SAN FRANCISCO—On the heels of the update that the San Jose BART extension is progressing and the Powell Street station will be getting a much-needed makeover comes the announcement that retail will be offered at the Embarcadero and Montgomery stations as initial rollouts. Blinq and SRS Real Estate Partners have formed a joint effort to establish convenient services, shopping and amenities for people traveling throughout BART's 44-station network.
Blinq has an exclusive agreement with BART to operate vending and concierge services, pop-up shops, local events and exclusive happenings that will serve the approximately 500,000 daily riders in the Bay Area. SRS has an exclusive brokerage agreement with Blinq to identify and recruit national, regional and local tenants which offer specialty and convenience services tailored to the communities for each station. People will be able to use Blinq to take care of errands, access exclusive deals and giveaways, and discover local community events.
Blinq is an online to offline retail ecosystem that combines a mobile app with modular pods located at the concourse level of BART stations to provide convenient services and experiences for commuters.
The Blinq pods will offer a rotating selection of grab and go products and services. For launch, Blinq has partnered with several local businesses such as Grubmarket, a purveyor organic farm-to-table foods; EO, a Marin County-based manufacturer of natural personal care essentials; Sol Republic, maker of stylish urban headphones and speakers; and Greener Cleaners, an eco-friendly dry cleaning service.
"With this mix of new services, shops and amenities Blinq and SRS will offer at BART stations, people will be able to take back five minutes of their day," said Blinq CEO Alexis Wong. "Our interconnected network is accessible to millions of people, who will be able take care of everyday needs, experience products and services, or discover local happenings. We think this combination of experiences, shopping and community is the future of the metro hub."
There are also a number of permanent, long-term retail spaces on BART concourses, which start at 100 square feet and vary in size according to each station's footprint. For example, there is approximately 8,400 square feet of retail space available at the Montgomery station. To attract the optimal retail mix for each station, SRS is reaching out to local businesses and national retailers that may want to expand or relocate. Delivery dates for the retail spaces at each station begin early 2016, with anticipated opening dates beginning mid-2016. SRS brokers Ranfie Ancelovici and John Polyzoides are leading the leasing efforts for these permanent retail spaces.
Matt Alexander, managing principal with SRS Real Estate Partners, tells Globest.com: "This is a terrific opportunity for any retailer looking to tap into the highly dynamic and diverse population here in the Bay Area. Whether you're a small local retailer wanting a 100-square-foot space or a national tenant looking for several thousand across BART's network, what better way than getting right in front of half a million transit riders daily?"
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Lisa Brown
Lisa Brown is an editor for the south and west regions of GlobeSt.com. She has 25-plus years of real estate experience, with a regional PR role at Grubb & Ellis and a national communications position at MMI. Brown also spent 10 years as executive director at NAIOP San Francisco Bay Area chapter, where she led the organization to achieving its first national award honors and recognition on Capitol Hill. She has written extensively on commercial real estate topics and edited numerous pieces on the subject.
