Buckland Business Brief: June 2023

It has been awhile since my last update on the website, but we have lots of new scoop! Check it out below!

Openings:

Slime Academy will open their doors tomorrow, June 11th! The children's activity center will open next to Newbury Comics at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The shop is an interactive Slime making experience with many options of colors and accent to add to your slime!

Sweetwater is NOW OPEN in the food court at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The restaurant features a Build Your Own Salad option, Smoothies, Bowls, Sandwiches, and more! 

EA Teriyaki is NOW OPEN in the food court at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The Mass-based chain replaced Sarku Japan. EA Teriyaki has locations in Holyoke Mall at Ingleside and at the Danbury Fair Mall. 

BoxLunch is coming soon to The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The Hot Topic-owned chain is currently under construction in the former Justice store on the second level. Look for them to open later this year!

Hungry Pot is nearing completion on their extensive build out at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The new chain of hot pot restaurants is taking over the former Crab Du Jour / Panera location on the first level near the Funny Bone. The chain is also opening locations in Danbury, Wethersfield, Westport, and Dartmouth, MA. 

New You Foot Spa has opened on the first level of The Shoppes at Buckland Hills, near Barnes & Noble. The foot spa replaced 208 Foot Spa, which moved to a new location.

Spa Day has opened on the first level of The Shoppes at Buckland Hills, near Macy's. The massage parlor opened in the former Crazy 8's space. 

The Sneaker Company is now open on the first level of The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The sneaker boutique replace the former Verizon store near JC Penney.

Unsettled Geeks has relocated their store to a new larger location at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills! The gaming store moved into the former Hallmark store on the second level, near Spencer's Gifts. 

Banter by Piercing Pagoda has replaced their kiosk with a new kiosk in the center court of The Shoppes at Buckland Hills. The new kiosk features the newest prototype of the chain. Check them out in front of Barnes & Noble. 

Apple will be expanding their store at The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The tech giant will expand into the former Chico's store next door; taking 2/3 of the space. The space will most likely be back of house space for Apple. 

Lenscrafters is nearing completion on their new location at The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The eyeglass company will open next door to Apple, in the former Ann Taylor location. 

Massage Envy will be moving from their longtime location at Evergreen Run, into The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! Massage Envy will replace the former location of Higher Ground Core; which recently moved into a new location in the center.

Sunglass Hut is coming soon to The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The sunglass store will open in the former L'Occitane space near Sleep Number. Construction should begin soon. 

Kung Fu Tea is coming soon to The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The bubble tea shop will open in the former Taste by Spellbound location near LL Bean. 

The Goddard School is officially open at The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The childcare center replaced Flatbread Company and most of the former Charming Charlies. 

Nike is now open at The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The footwear giant took over nearly 6,000 square feet of vacant space near New Balance. 

Higher Ground Core has moved to a much larger location at Evergreen Walk! The studio relocated to the former J Crew space near Eddie Bauer. The studio features fitness classes, barre, and much more.

New 'Letters of Intent' have been signed by retailers for most of the vacant spaces at Evergreen Walk. These spaces include:
- The 6,000 square foot space last occupied by Baby Gap - Gap Kids. New tenant is not yet known. 
​- The remaining 4,950 square feet of the former Charming Charlies. New tenant is not yet known.
- The remaining 1,500 square feet of the former Clark's. New tenant is not yet know.
- The 2,700 square foot sapce last occupied by Moe's. New tenant is not yet known.
- The 11,665 square foot space last occupied by Brooks Brothers. New tenant is not yet known.
- The 2,200 square foot space last occupied by Lux Bond & Green. New tenant is not yet known.
​
Another new tenant is coming soon to The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk. The unknown tenant will begin construction soon next to Carhartt. 

People's Bank is now open at Evergreen Walk! The bank was built on a vacant parcel next to Costco.

Whole Foods Market is coming soon to The Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk! The exterior of  the grocer is just about done, but the interior is still under construction.

iCode has opened their new coding school at The Plaza at Burr Corners! The coding school is geared towards kids and teens! Look for them near Metro Mattress! 

Best Brains Learning Center is coming soon to The Plaza at Burr Corners! The learning center will be located next to the UPS store.

Tech Genius will be reopening their store in Manchester! The phone repair shop was located in the mall before closing. The store will be opening at The Plaza at Burr Corner near Metro Mattress. 

110 Grill is officially under construction at The Plaza at Burr Corner! The high-end restaurant will feature a large gluten free menu! Look for them to open later this year!

Advanced Auto Parts has opened their new store! The auto part shop opened next door to DSW in the Best Buy plaza! The store replaced a vacant space once home to Tweeter ETC. 

Hibachi Grill Buffet has opened in the former Hometown Buffet location near PC Richards! The buffet was once located in West Hartford before relocated to Manchester to make way for Planet Fitness. 

Total Fitness Equipment has opened in a new temporary location! The fitness equipment shop is currently located next to Mattress Firm in the Best Buy plaza; but will relocated to a newly demised space next to Edge Fitness later this year!

Curaleaf is nearing completion on their new Manchester location! The medical and recreational dispensary will replace the former Friendly's at 240 Buckland Road. 

Baja's Fresh Grill will replaced the vacant Burger Fi restaurant at 1062 Tolland Turnpike. The chain has locations in Mass and Rhode Island. 

Modwash, a car wash chain, is proposing a new car wash at the site of the Gerich's Service Garage in front of BJ's. The car wash is not yet approved and is still working its way through planning and zoning. 

Salsa Fresca is coming soon to The Plaza at Buckland Hills! The fast-casual chain will open next to PM Pediatrics. 

​Orthopedic Associates will open a new location at One Buckland Center! The medical office will take over 5,000 square feet of vacant space in the plaza. 

Central CT Dermatology will open a new location in the Hannoush Jeweler's plaza at 340 Buckland Road. The practice has locations throughout Connecticut.

208 Foot Spa has reopened their Manchester spa at 179 Deming Street! The spa is located near Fedex.


Closing:

EbLens will be closing all their stores, including their locations at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills in Manchester and Main Street in East Hartford. The streetwear chain has over 50 locations in the Northeast. 

Sunglass Hut will be closing their store at the mall once their new location at Evergreen Walk opens. 

Lenscrafters will be closing their location at the mall once their new location at Evergreen Walk opens.

T Mobile has closed one of their two locations at the mall. The store near Barnes & Noble closed quietly last week. They still have a presence at the mall with a T Mobile store near Macy's and a Metro by T Mobile store near Barnes & Noble.  

Dude's Donut has sadly closed their doors at Evergreen Walk! The donut shop was a pop-up shop near the Green.

Jenny Craig has closed their weight-loss center at The Plaza at Burr Corners. The entire chain of centers closed their doors suddenly last month.