Colorado Springs Retail Briefs: August 24, 2007

Spicy Pickle, a sandwich shop with headquarters in Denver, plans to open three locations in Colorado Springs.

The chain opened in 1999 as a partnership between Kevin Morrison and Tony Walker, who were both chefs at the Barolo Grill.

"The Spicy Pickle concept began when were talking about the appeal of a sandwich shop that stayed true to great food, but with a friendly neighborhood feel," Walker said. "Since we're both food guys, quality is No. 1 to us. The day we opened our first location in Denver, people began lining up to try our wide variety of menu choices and they've been coming ever since."

The menu offers exotic paninis, salads, subs, soups and the company's signature spicy pickle.

John Volmert is the owner of the franchises in the greater Colorado Springs area.

"Someone told me to have a sandwich (at a Spicy Pickle) and I liked it so much I ended up buying it," said Volmert, who also owns several Cold Stone Creameries.

The first location, at 1466 W. Garden of the Gods Road, is scheduled to open Sept. 4. The second location, at 9275 N. Union Blvd. across from Memorial Hospital North, will open in late fall. The third location has yet to be determined.

The privately-owned company has franchise locations in seven states.

Back-to-college sales spending to hit $47 billion

As college students prepare to hit their campuses, it is no surprise that spending on dorm and apartment furniture is expected to increase.

According to the National Retail Federation's 2007 Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, students and their parents will spend a combined average of $956.93 for back-to-college merchandise, up from last year's $880.52.

Spending for clothing and accessories is expected to jump to $7.41 billion from last year's $5.78 billion. Laptops, digital cameras, iPhones and other cell phones should be big sellers again this year, with students and their parents expected to spend a total of $12.8 billion for electronics.

Other essentials for college students include shoes ($2.96 billion) and school supplies such as notebooks, folders and pencils ($3.14 billion). More than $15 billion will be spent for textbooks.

Trendy dorm and apartment furnishings are becoming increasingly important to students, and spending in this category is expected to reach $5.43 billion, up from last year's $3.82 billion. Young adults 18-24 will shell out the most in this category, spending an average of $158.61.

The majority (57.2 percent) of students and their families will be shopping at college bookstores, while others will head to discounters (51.5 percent), department stores (41.8 percent), office supply stores (35.6 percent), clothing stores (34.3 percent) and electronics stores (20.9 percent). Nearly one-third of consumers plan to shop online for back-to-college necessities.

When it comes to a student's living situation, half of those polled (49.7 percent) said they would be living at home during the school year, while more than one-fourth (28.6 percent) will live in off-campus housing. One-fifth (18.7 percent) will stay in a dormitory or other type of college housing and a small fraction (1.3 percent) will live in a fraternity or sorority house.

Students living on-campus will outspend their peers by a wide margin. Dorm dwellers are expected to spend $1,529.45 for college merchandise, nearly double what students living at home will spend ($774.86) and also substantially more than students living off- campus ($1,161.98)

Freshmen, many with gift cards and cash from graduation gifts, will spend the most this year ($1,193.60). Sophomores, with an average of $748.29, are expected to spend the least.

Joan Johnson covers retail for the Colorado Springs Business Journal.

Copyright 2007 Dolan Media Newswires
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