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November 1-7, 2018
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Record & Observer British SHOPPING firm buys Record & Observer InMotion WITHOUT THE for $198M DRIVE Record & Observer JACKSONVILLE
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New stores and restaurants will bring convenience for northern St. John County residents — and take business from Duval.
WH Smith will keep CEO and the Jacksonvillebased company’s employees. BY KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Walmart, its first anchor, scheduled its grand opening Wednesday. It will be followed by other anchors like Home Depot, restaurants like Keke’s Breakfast Cafe and entertainment options like Cinemark, a 12-screen movie theater. Durbin Park, which will be built in four phases, will be developed on 1,600 acres
London-based WH Smith PLC announced Tuesday that it agreed to buy Jacksonville-based InMotion for $198 million in a deal expected to close by year-end. President and CEO Jeremy Smith said InMotion will operate as a subsidiary, retaining its almost 800 employees systemwide and its 55 or so in Jacksonville. InMotion, a “pure play travel retailer,” sells digital accessories such as h ea d p h o n e s, ea r b u d s, mobile power and portable speakers among 114 Smith locations in 43 U.S. airports, Smith said. It was formed in 1998 and acquired in 2013 by Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Co. LLC and Palladin Consumer Retail Partners. “We look forward to working with the CEO, Jeremy Smith, and his team to further develop both businesses across North America and other territories,” said WH Smith Group Chief Executive Stephen Clarke in the release. “They viewed us as an attractive platform on which to enter the U.S. market,” Smith said. “And we are trying to expand internationally into the UK and Europe and
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Record & Observer
Photo by Jay Schlichter
Workers prepare the entrance sign for the Walmart Supercenter in The Pavilion at Durbin Park. The store is the first of many retailers planned for the northern St. Johns County shopping center, which is planned to be larger than St. Johns Town Center when completed. BY JAY SCHLICHTER ASSOCIATE EDITOR
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esidents of northern St. Johns County are accustomed to the drive. With no large retail centers with big-box stores, restaurants and retailers, residents often must travel north into Duval County for shopping, dining and entertainment.
That’s about to change. Plans show that northern St. Johns County will gain three large shopping centers totaling at least 4.5 million square feet of retail space. Those comprise: n Up to 2.4 million square feet in The Pavilion at Durbin Park. n 1.7 million square feet in SilverLeaf. n 450,000 square feet in Beachwalk. The Pavilion will be the first to open.
Mathis Report: East San Marco project ‘is moving forward’ PAGE 4 Cawton Report: St. Johns River Ferry returns to service PAGE 6 OBSERVER MEDIA GROUP
THE BASCH REPORT
Regency not downbeat on retailer bankruptcies Developer sees opportunities. PAGE 8 VOLUME 1, NO. 22 • ONE SECTION