Del Sol has made two major changes for the cruise season shoppers this year. One is its reconstruction in a new location on Franklin Street by the Mount Roberts Tramway. The other is its connection to the new Cariloha store making its Juneau debut.
The sister stores will hold an interactive grand opening today with the Alaskan Luau dance group performing.
Cariloha specializes in clothing, textiles, bed and bath products and other wares made of bamboo and eco-friendly materials. Associate Vice President of Communications Scott Brady said this is a perfect complement to the new Del Sol location next door, which sells apparel and accessories that change color in sunlight.
Brady said moving the Del Sol store, which has been a fixture in the downtown tourism scene for years, goes with this venture by a complete reconstruction with additional square footage and new fixtures.
“This will be very great for the Juneau community,” he said, explaining that these types of stores mingle with the location. He said Juneau was chosen for Cariloha partly because of the environmental friendliness of the area, saying a store for eco-friendly goods would go well here.
Senior Vice President of Retail Operations Dustin Tate said the company felt like this could be one of the best places for this, especially with the tourism environment. He said the cruise ships and the investment the city has made in tourism have provided a positive experience for the Del Sol store over the years.
Brady explained that the sister stores operate under the same parent company umbrella. Tate added this will mark the company’s 12th operating Cariloha store, and that there are just under 100 Del Sol outlets in operation.
Tate said with more than $300,000 invested, Juneau’s combination of the stores is one of the company’s biggest investments to date.
“But we feel it’s a very wise investment, as we’re projecting to do twice the sales volume as we’ve done previously, which will require more local employees and add more tax revenue to Juneau’s economy. Part of our motivation for the current location was Juneau’s very positive future outlook, with the new CBJ investment in the waterfront infrastructure that is projected to take place over the next several years, and the head tax reduction that has done wonders to bring more optimism back into the cruise industry and economy for Alaska,” he said.
Tate said the stores have about 18 employees, half of which are from Juneau. Brady said the combination will help local employment and revenue.
“We anticipate bolstering the economy here for many years to come,” said Brady.
• Contact reporter Jonathan Grass at 523-2276 or jonathan.grass@juneauempire.com.
Comments (12)
Add commentmore $$ leaving Juneau
Went into this store the other day. It just doesn't fit into Juneau, and the prices are insane, and once again they won't be open during the winter, they will take their tourist dollars and leave town. $300,000 investment? Yep in the items they have on hand that cost way too much. I only support businesses that are locally owned and hire locally. 18 employees, about half are local.....OH Thanks! As a local, born and raised I'm so sick of seeing these stores here, yes, they pay sales tax, maybe property tax but then the rest of the money is taken elsewhere.
Same stores in every port.
Same stores in every port. Why not have something unusual and different here. I went on a Caribbean cruise and stopped at six ports. All the same jewelry shops and clothing stores as the seasonal shops here. But they do well because the cruise ships that give free seminars on port shopping recommend these stores. It's sad to see.
Went into the same store
Went into the same store combo in Grand Cayman in March. In fact the girl working there had worked in the Juneau and was planning on returning this summer.
Del Sol
Del Sol is an example of cruise ship retail marketing at its very worst. Selling items that change color in the sun is ridiculous in Southeast Alaska. Also, I have witnessed their employees standing outside the store verbally harrassing every person who passes by, trying to entice them into the store. I am sure many tourists are as offended by this as the locals.
I miss Galligaskins! It was
I miss Galligaskins! It was locally owned and open all year. They had friendly staff and could always find that special gift or clothing item there...
Locally Owned businesses downtown
Locals should put together a list of locally owned downtown businesses. I know there is: Alaska Fudge Company, Nor'Westerly, Trove, Juneau T-Shirt Company, Caribou Crossings, Bears Lair, Alaskan Brewery shop(fun). I know there are more but these businesses deserve a shot at the locals stopping by and checking out their items, not all are tourist items either which is nice.
Thinking back when I was in
Thinking back when I was in the store in Grand Cayman, the guy from our ship was in there He's the one that had a booth telling all the passengers which stores to shop at while in port. He came into the store and was telling the ladies working there that he needed a new bamboo shirt because the one he used on the ship to show passengers was missing. They promptly got him a new one!
More of the same old
More of the same old anit-tourism, anti-business drivel. Tourism is one of the economic life lines of our community. The businesses which operate in more than one location are just an example of the opportunities available to local entrepreneurs to grow a business bigger than what Juneau has to offer. Through tourism Juneau is a gateway to those local business people with the moxie to see beyond the limited business opportunities available by operating soley in the Juneau market. To those who want to see S. Franklin St. filled with empty stores, the way it was before the cruise ships came to town, I don't know what to say.
South Franklin is filled with
South Franklin is filled with empty stores most of the year. They only time it is filled with stores is during the tourist season.
and both malls in the valley
and both malls in the valley are filled with empty stores all year long...
JuneauAlaskan, you miss the
JuneauAlaskan, you miss the point. Nobody here is anti-business. The problem is that cruise ships come up and dock at our docks at a tremendous cost to us, then they unload their tourists and direct them to stores the ships also own. That money does not stay in Juneau. That money doesn't even stay in state. This is why we advocated for a head tax, because it was a guarantee that some money would go to the city.
It seems that Del Sol is not
It seems that Del Sol is not welcome in the Juneau community but still we can credit its efforts of promoting eco-friendly products.