Boscov's chose Bridgeport. Now, the department store hopes shoppers choose it back

Oct. 2—BRIDGEPORT — The decision to open a new location for Boscov's, a 110-year-old family department store chain, did not come at random, according to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jim Boscov.

In fact, the brand only opens one new venue a year, taking into consideration the local market, consumer behavior and community values, he said.

When Boscov's announced it would open its 50th location — and its first West Virginia venue — in Bridgeport's Meadowbrook Mall, it came with extensive planning and conversations with local stakeholders.

Now, with their opening week underway, store management hopes the brand's message will resonate with shoppers from Harrison County and North Central West Virginia.

When picking where to expand, one of the first factors Boscov's considers is brand recognition. With stores in Maryland, Ohio and Pennsylvania, moving to a nearby state like West Virginia makes more sense than crossing time zones or switching coasts, Boscov said.

When Boscov asked attendees at its charity luncheon six months ago how many of them had heard of the brand, three quarters said they had, and over half said they had already visited the store in another location.

"That means our strategy of just pushing out the boundaries a little bit at a time makes sense," Boscov said.

The company also looked for places with available space and clientele, since "malls are not building new stores these days," he said.

After visiting several potential sites in West Virginia and beyond, Boscov said his company selected Clarksburg roughly one year ago. Then construction began.

"And when I say construction, initially it's destruction," Boscov said.

Accommodating such a large storefront meant restructuring the mall's current layout, and working with mall management to help some retailers already present move elsewhere in the mall.

Construction has been completed on the new venue, which clocks in at more than 150,000 square feet of retail space in the shopping center.

"We have had a long standing relationship with the Boscovs," said Joe Bell, director of corporate communications for Cafaro, the property management company that oversees the Meadowbrook Mall. "We've done well together where we developed other Boscov's stores."

"There was this large empty space," Bell added. "We were able to carve out the exact kind of spatial dimensions that would be necessary to make Boscov's successful at that location."

With construction now complete, Boscov's leadership is now focusing on outreach with the local community, introducing unfamiliar shoppers to their brand and reacquainting with returning patrons.

The store is slated to kick off a three-day opening celebration, beginning with its Oct. 5 Charity Day.

Purchases made on opening day will contribute funding to participating nonprofits in the local community. The store will also host a ceremony in which it grants thousands of dollars in funding to Tygart Valley United Way and over 100 other charitable organizations.

Then, on Oct. 6, the store will host Family Fun Day, providing local youth and parents free activities and programming.

Finally, on Oct. 7, the store will host a ribbon cutting ceremony, marking the completion of the brand's West Virginia debut.

Through this programming, Boscov said his company hopes to show customers it is invested in the local community.

"We really do believe in being a good citizen and a good member of the community," he said.

Boscov said his store's person-first approach sets it apart from other businesses. Customers won't be interfacing with machines, but rather members of the community working on the sales floor, ready to offer help and answer questions.

So far, the store has already hired 220 employees, and is looking to bring on even more.

"I think it is going to be an incredible boom for the mall and the region," said Katherine Wagner, president of the Harrison County Chamber of Commerce.

"They're hiring over 200 people to get the store open. They're going to maintain over 100 employees on an annual basis," she added. "That's just an incredible economic impact to not only the mall and Harrison County, but the whole North Central West Virginia region."

Boscov hopes the store's expansive inventory will also appeal to consumers. Boscov's prides itself on offering a variety of products, not just one name brand.

This also helps each customer shop at a level affordable to them, he added.

"You're going to find pricing that you're not used to seeing."

With only a couple of days until opening day, Boscov and his colleagues have a busy few days ahead. For now, he just asked that local shoppers give the store a chance by stopping by its opening festivities.

"It's going to be spectacular and beautiful," he said. "We say expect the unexpected. You won't be disappointed."

Reach Jack Walker by email at jwalker@timeswv.com.