Multi-Use Site is Valuable for Omni-Channel Retailer
The former Total Shooting Sports facility, a 94,218-square-foot indoor gun range and retail store, was purchased by an omni-channel retailer, Weby Corp, which specializes in omni-channel and e-commerce.
FORT WORTH—Size matters, but so does the ability to adapt for multiple uses. Such was the case when the former Total Shooting Sports facility, a 94,218-square-foot indoor gun range and retail operation, was purchased by an omni-channel retailer.
The purchaser, Weby Corp, is a technology company that specializes in omni-channel and e-commerce. Weby Corp will move its operations into the North Richland Hills facility located on Texas 26 near Loop 820.
Weby has been an Amazon vendor since 2011 and represents more than 500 different brands in third-party marketplaces. It currently operates several physical retail stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and several more are planned. Weby Corp views expansion into physical retail as part of its long-term strategy of redefining retailing in the age of e-commerce. The company plans to reopen the gun range at some point to combine it with retail operations.
Weitzman, representing a limited liability corporation as the seller, negotiated the sale of the facility. Derek Schuster and David Zoller with Weitzman handled seller negotiations. Jim Hazard with ESRP represented the purchaser.
“The size, multiple-use potential and condition of the building make this a gem in the heart of Northeast Tarrant County,” Zoller tells GlobeSt.com. “The location is one of the most central in the metroplex, situated between Fort Worth and Dallas with access to downtown Fort Worth, DFW Airport, Arlington and Dallas. The site also boasts separate street frontages along Boulevard 26 and Davis Boulevard, and also features visibility and accessibility from the interstate.”
Dallas-Fort Worth’s retail market marked the mid-year point of 2019 with retail market occupancy of 92.6%, which represents a gain from the healthy 92.4% occupancy recorded at year-end 2018, according to a report by Weitzman. The market stability and healthy occupancy improved in part due to strong leasing in existing retail centers, which includes the absorption of large vacancies left in 2018 by Toys R Us, and limited new retail construction that is firmly in line with demand.
With the occupancy expected to remain stable, and even increase through year-end 2019, Weitzman forecasts that 2019 will be DFW’s sixth consecutive year of occupancy above 90%. The mid-year report is based on Weitzman’s review of a total DFW retail market inventory of approximately 201 million square feet of space in projects with 25,000 square feet or more–the largest retail inventory for any metro area in Texas. By keeping new development on pace with demand and adding little if any speculative space, the market has avoided the overbuilding that marked previous periods of strong retail market performance.