The Wayback Machine - https://web.archive.org/web/20090625122241/http://blogs.kansas.com:80/haveyouheard/

Remarkable Consignment to open at Central and Rock

WICHITA — The economy is keeping some people from opening new businesses, but Dooz Pankratz and Maureen Morrison say the time is right for their Remarkable Consignment, a new women’s clothing and furniture shop coming to Central and Rock on July 8.

“It’s remarkable items that have been remarked,” Pankratz says.

She’s the former director of marketing and business development for Legasus Group.

Morrison briefly was a family business advisor there.

She says Legasus “just was not a good fit.”

Morrison started thinking about a consignment shop when a friend of hers wanted to sell some furniture she’d had only a few years. She didn’t want to have a garage sale, so she hired an auction company.

“What if you had a consignment store that would take that kind of furniture?” Morrison thought.

She and Pankratz started talking.

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Chisholm Trail close to 100 percent occupied

WICHITA — With the addition of a branch of the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame, Chisholm Trail Center-Outlet & Retail Shops is close to 100 percent leased.

“It’ll put us right about 94 percent,” says Brent Mitchell, an attorney with Martin Pringle who owns the center with his brother, Brian.

“We’ve been working on this one for a while,” he says of the Hall’s 21,000 square feet.

The Mitchells bought the center three years ago this August when occupancy was only 35 percent.

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Kansas Sports Hall of Fame to locate at Chisholm Trail in addition to Boathouse

WICHITA — Even though the spacious Wichita Boathouse is going to be the new home for the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame, there’s still not room to house all of the Hall’s memorabilia.

That’s because the second floor of the Boathouse will be used for event and party rentals.

“We don’t want to put these things in a box and put them on a back shelf somewhere,” says Ted Hayes, the Hall’s president and CEO, of high school and college sports memorabilia. “That would be a shame.”

Enter Chisholm Trail Center-Outlet & Retail Shops. The Hall is taking 21,000 square feet at the Newton center.

“Obviously, right beside the interstate at an exit in a growing retail development made an awfully lot of sense just from (a standpoint of) visibility and location,” Hayes says.

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You don’t say

WICHITA - “If I had enough money, I’d buy the whole town. It’s so cute.”

Chester’s Chophouse co-owner and chef Bobby Lane on the town of Mulvane, which he occasionally visits while dining at Luciano’s Restaurant

Connie’s Cookies to go international with a new company

WICHITA — For years, Connie Hamilton dreamed of doing something big with her Connie’s Cookies.

She moved her business to Sweetbriar at 21st and Amidon. She doubled her space there. And she entered into a licensed agreement for two women to open a Connie’s Cookie’s in Kansas City, Kan.

But she still wanted bigger.

With customers like Tom Devlin and Gayla Carney, Hamilton has always known “I have resources I probably could have called upon.”

“I just never felt confident enough to do that.”

Instead, Arthur Kerr, chief executive of Kerr Enterprises in New York, came to her. And with his help Hamilton took what she calls a “big and scary” move to form Connie’s Cookies International and take sales worldwide.

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Big Easy Cajun to open at Towne East Square

WICHITA — Towne East Square is going to let the good times roll this fall with the addition of Big Easy Cajun, a restaurant that will serve New Orleans-style cuisine.

The restaurant, which is at a lot of malls owned by Simon Property Group, will be in the food court.

You don’t say

“We were losing money so fast I couldn’t count it.”
AirTran Airways chief executive Bob Fornaro speaking at Tuesday’s Wichita Aero Club luncheon on how oil prices rose from $90 to $140 a barrel in nine months last year

NewMarket Square starts third phase of development

newmarketWICHITA — The economy hasn’t halted plans at NewMarket Square.

Construction is under way on the third phase of development at the shopping center at 21st and Maize.

The new area is west of Best Buy.

New parking lots are already in along with a service drive that will allow service vehicles behind new buildings in this phase.

Prep work has begun on the buildings, which will start to take shape this summer.

Look for more details from developer Slawson Cos. soon.

Sandbar Trading to open a sister store in Santa Fe

WICHITA — The tough economic climate has actually proven to be a benefit for Sandbar Trading owners Richard and Julie Gottsponer.

“We have been trying for years to figure out a way to do a gallery in Santa Fe just for the high season,” Richard Gottsponer says.

Space has always been too expensive to lease, but with other galleries and shops folding, there was an opening.

“All the stars just got aligned, and we were able to get us a great location on Canyon Road,” Gottsponer says. “Canyon Road is kind of like Rodeo Drive in California or Fifth Avenue in New York.

“It’s almost the art capital of the world anymore. Seriously.”

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Justin Timberlake makes Sullivan Higdon & Sink employee’s weekend

shannoncroppedpicWICHITA — Colleagues and clients from Sullivan Higdon & Sink may know Shannon Albert as an analytical and technology-minded digital producer or perhaps as a fun and outgoing mother of two.

But they got to see another side of her Friday.

Albert admits to an obsession with Justin Timberlake.

Thanks to Twitter, she had something of a weekend cyber fling with the singer. She calls it a “Twitterfair.”

Thursday night, Albert posted this to Twitter:

justin3“Might have to unfollow @jtimberlake because a 34-year-old mother of 2 should not squeeee every time he Tweets. Embarrassing. I love him.”

To which Timberlake replied:

“What exactly is “squee-ing” @ShannonAlbert?”

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