LEOMINSTER — The ribbon was cut Friday on the new location for Gardner Outlet Furniture, which has moved across town to the Watertower Plaza, in part due to the ongoing uncertainty with the future of the Mall at Whitney Field.
Mayor Dean Mazzarella joined Gardner Outlet Furniture owners Chris Cormier and Kate Banville and city Business Development and Event Coordinator Melissa Tasca to cut the ribbon on their new location.
“I still miss the Macy’s store, but we’re happy to be here,” where Party City used to be, said Cormier. He explained that they have signed at 10-year lease at the Watertower Plaza — where Staples and Barnes & Noble bookstore are located — but that was not available at the Mall at Whitney Field.
“It’s huge in here,” said Mazzarella. “I know you had to leave the mall as they’re redoing the mall over.”
Cormier said while it’s not certain what’s happening at the Mall at Whitney Field, where they were formerly located, in the former Macy’s Department Store, they were unable to secure a 10-year renewal on their lease.
“Costco did sitework” at the Mall at Whitney Field, said Cormier, adding that it looked like the writing was on the wall, though he did not hear whether it has advanced since that point, as there were reportedly issues with the water table as the mall is essentially on the edge of a swamp, which might have made Costco balk at tearing down the mall and taking over the site.
Cormier explained that there’s more room in the new location than people would think, as they were able to tear down a wall and incorporate a whole extra section of the building that wasn’t available when it was Party City.
“There’s a taste for everyone, which is why we needed to get a big space,” said Cormier, to be able to stock a variety of furniture at all the different price points. He also said they felt furniture sales are one of the few industries that aren’t going online like a lot of the businesses these days. “It’s a touchy-feely, see-buy” industry, he said.
“We’re happy to have stayed here in Leominster, at a nice, busy plaza,” said Cormier.
He said the new location is a bit smaller than the Macy’s location, but not by much. Plus, they also recently moved their Gardner location from a small store with tricky parking on Main Street in Gardner to a bigger store with better parking at Timpany Plaza in Gardner.
The new Leominster location has been open about a month, but they just held the ribbon-cutting ceremony to make it official on Friday.
“We’ve been very busy, we’re happy to be here,” said Banville.
“With the size of the room, if you want to talk reclining chairs, there’s so many to choose from, and they won’t let you leave until you have the right fit,” said Mazzarella.
“We’re happy to be here in the city and happy to serve the community for years to come,” Cormier said.
Mazzarella wondered why they kept the name Gardner Outlet Furniture. Cormier noted they still have a store in Gardner, even though it’s a bit smaller, plus he said there’s national recognition of the name “Gardner” in association with quality furniture, since it was once a major furniture hub.
“There’s still a strong draw a strong recognition of furniture in Gardner,” Cormier said.
Mazzarella asked if any of the furniture they sell nowadays is still made in the United States, and Cormier said some of it is, but none is actually still made in Gardner.
“We have a mix … you got to have a little bit for everyone to appeal to the masses,” Cormier said.
Mazzarella noted the location is right off the highway, which is another perk.
Banville credited the city with making the move smooth, saying, “You guys make business easy to do. You are pro-business.”
She noted how all the employees are local and pointed out that she and Cormier are cousins and said their slogan is “Let our family help your family.”
But that’s not the only change recently, with several other fairly new stores finding success in the Watertower Plaza and a continued flood of new stores and restaurants at the Twin Cities Plaza on the Fitchburg-Leominster line.
Other Watertower Plaza happenings
A manager at Staples said they got a boost recently when the office goods chain merged with Party City stores nationwide, and now Staples stocks the top Party City supplies. So in Leominster, you can still prep for your party at Watertower Plaza, just realize Party City has closed its former store and is now part of Staples. Balloons and party favors now grace the aisles at Staples, along with computer printers, office chairs and … staplers.
Also fairly new to Watertower Plaza is Kay’s Jewelers, which paved the way for Gardner Outlet Furniture’s move, having moved there from the Mall at Whitney Field in 2024.
Since the move, it’s been going “great,” said Luis, one of the managers at the jewelry store. And that’s in part, he said, “because malls are a dying thing.”
“This is a destination, so that makes it key,” said Janine, another assistant manager at Kay’s Jewelers, “so they’re not going to be at the mall to just look around.”
She also noted Kay’s is one of the few jewelers left in the area.
“It’s a great location, but we need them to put in something next to here,” she said, referring to the empty portion of the new building that Kay’s shares with Alta Beauty. “We’re happy, we’re doing really good here,” she said.
The initial plan for that was said to be an Amazon Fresh grocery delivery service, but Amazon halted plans to start up several Amazon Fresh locations across Massachusetts a few years back at about the same time when it knocked down the former Shaw’s grocery store and built a new building. According to TastingTable.com in January, Amazon has scrapped its in-store pickup Amazon Fresh locations, but retained a few that just do deliveries. Reportedly, all attempts to build Amazon Fresh in-store pickup locations in Massachusetts have failed so far, having encountered regulatory hurdles.
While Five Below has been at the Watertower Plaza since 2009, Alison, the assistant manager, said, “We’re doing great,” especially since they had a major expansion four years ago. “It’s a candy store, a toy store, people like this store,” she said.
Alta Beauty is fairly new to the plaza, going in next to Kay’s Jewelers, and Bath & Body Works also moved over from the Mall at Whitney Field, but employees at both locations said they could not talk, and referred all questions to corporate offices that did not respond to requests for comment.
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