Chase Cusmano took a big step this year by transforming his online business into a physical location at the Port Charlotte Town Center.
Cusmano believes fans of the Japanese animation style anime will appreciate the uniqueness of his merchandise at Gunpla-Bbox, his new store at the Town Center where you’ll find everything from Pokémon trading cards to Japanese candy to robot model kits.
He says he didn’t hesitate signing the lease at the Town Center even though the mall has been struggling for years now.
“No, it wasn't a scary venture at all,” said Cuzmano. “The scariest part about this venture was, more so, not knowing what is going to happen with those condos coming in and having to kind of wait and see what's going to happen, you know?”
Exactly what’s going to happen to the mall is unclear because the previous owner, Washington Prime, gave the property back to its lenders to avoid foreclosure.
According to Dave Gammon, the director of Charlotte County’s Economic Development Office, a real estate development company out of Miami plans to build 250 apartments where the Macy’s and nearby parking lot are now. He says it’s an important step in bringing new life to the Town Center.
“Malls were the way you did things in the 70s, 80s and 90s, when the poor Charlotte Town Center was built. That was the way people shopped. They don't do that anymore. That's not how we shop today, it has to be a new type of shopping experience,” said Gammon.
Gammon says he expects to see significant change at the Charlotte Town Center in the next three years. That change will likely be a mixed-use space — joining a rapid national trend since 2020 in construction that blends spaces to live, work, and play.
Gammon says change will bring much needed new life to the area.
“A lot more walkable, urban, vibrant, exciting type experience,” says Gammon. “There would be entertainment complexes, absolutely more restaurants — easier to get in and out of restaurants. And then of course your traditional shopping experience, like the mall already has. So, you take the best of what's already there and expand on to it. It could really be exciting”
Cusmano agrees change is necessary and says retailers in the mall have got to give more to consumers.
“Going to the mall has to be, you know, something that keeps you there for the day. Otherwise, there's not really a point. If you're just buying something, you're going to go on Amazon. You're going to buy something and you're going to see it tomorrow. Sometimes see it the same day. So, it has to be an experience.”
That’s exactly what Cusmano says he’s delivering an anime experience.
“We do art lessons two days a week,” says Cusmano. “It's not just a retail space now. It's, it's more like a community.”
He hopes he and other small business owners will reap the benefits of change in more spending.
In an email, John Scherlacher, the marketing director for the mall, says he and his team don’t know the future of the Town Center beyond the construction of the apartments at the Macy’s site. But he says the mall continues to operate business as usual with quote “the speculation of a very bright and prosperous future.”
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