Downtown Merchants Say Borders Leaving Will Have Big Impact

Naresh Mansukhani, owner of Fairfield Clothiers, lived through the dark days in downtown Fairfield, after the Fairfield Store closed and dozens of smaller retailers closed up shop in its wake.

Mansukhani, who opened his shop shortly after the Fairfield Store closed in July 1996, said the upcoming closing of Borders Books will have a significant impact on customer traffic downtown because Borders drew a lot of people to Fairfield Center.

"No question about it," Mansukhani said when asked if Borders' leaving by the end of May would hurt downtown merchants.

"Hopefully, somebody stronger will come in," Mansukhani added.

Borders was not on the original list of stores to be closed under a Chapter 11 reorganization. But the Fairfield Borders, and 27 other Borders nationwide, were added to the list on Thursday afternoon.

Mansukhani and Roger Boroway, owner of Midas Touch Jewelers, which has been downtown for 35 years, said some of their customers are walk-in shoppers who might not otherwise have been downtown had it not been for Borders.

"I consider it a destination and a walk-in," Boroway said of his store, adding that Borders had a lot of customers and increased foot traffic to his store.

Boroway said a high-end department store would be a good replacement for Borders. He said Al Kleban, who owns the two-story, 80,000-square-foot commercial building at the corner of Post and Reef roads, which includes several other national retailers, has a "top-notch place and people are going to have to pay for it."

Mansukhani said a store like Crate and Barrel, which sells home furnishings, also would be a good replacement. He said many Fairfield residents are home-conscious and likely would benefit from such a store.

Mansukhani said he didn't think the 27,321 square feet of space occupied by Borders would be vacant for a long time. "I don't think the landlord can leave it empty a long time without affecting the bottom line," he said.

Albert de Vidas, owner of Engravers World, which has been downtown for 32 years, also said Borders' leaving would hurt downtown. "It's always bad to have empty spots. It doesn't look good for the public. Empty spots are always bad," he said.

But de Vidas said most of his shoppers are "destination shoppers" in search of gifts and engraving and that a lot of merchandise he sells is related to babies, such as cups, spoons and combs. "I don't have many walk-in customers. I never did...That's why I lasted," he said.

de Vidas said he hopes Borders isn't replaced by a bank or real estate or insurance offices. "That kills retail," he said.

First Selectman Ken Flatto said he was "very disappointed" about the upcoming closing of Borders. "While the local store here was profitable, the national chain was hemorrhaging and decided they could not keep the store open unless they got basically free rent, which wasn't going to happen," Flatto said.

Flatto said he was confident the Kleban family, who bought the two-story building from Louis L. Ceruzzi Jr. several years ago, would have new tenants for the space by mid-summer and that the new tenants would excite Fairfield residents and draw a lot of shoppers downtown. "I'm very reassured that they have a strategy I think will work to have that space come alive again very soon," Flatto said.

Elise Greenspan of Westport, who was among shoppers at Borders on Friday afternoon, said she would miss the mega-bookstore. "They have a great kids' section. For my kids, I still come. They have a great cafe, great cappuccino. It's cozy," she said.

Greenspan, who works in Fairfield, said it was nice to have a bookstore in town, but she said the only other one that could probably afford the rent in Kleban's building was Barnes and Noble, which already had a store several miles away on the Post Road in Westport. "I guess they'll have to split it up," she said of the space.

Marilyn Mitchell, who lives in Trumbull, said she shops at the Fairfield Borders because she doesn't like the selection at a bookstore in a mall in Trumbull and that Borders is "a big draw."

"I certainly think so," Mitchell said when asked if Borders' closing would affect the number of shoppers downtown. "It's a place to come and even meet others here. It's too bad," she said.

de Vidas said there wasn't much downtown merchants could do but hope for the best. "We'll see. We'll take it as it comes. That's all we can do," he said.

Ceruzzi built the two-story building that houses Borders, as well as national retailers Victoria's Secret, Ann Taylor Loft, Chico's and Banana Republic, after demolishing the structure that housed the Fairfield Store. The Fairfield Store, which was a family-owned department store, closed in 1996 after 75 years in business.