save the capitol room

This email was sent to savcapitalroom@aol.com and to Belk, Inc. in support of their campaign to save The Capitol Room cafeteria at Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, NC. I felt that Belk should know my position as well.

I just wanted to say that I appreciate the efforts of Norma Baker Cook and Betsy Pridgen to persuade Belk, Inc. to reconsider the closing of the Capitol Room Cafeteria at Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall. I read about it in the Raleigh News & Observer.

Crabtree Valley Mall’s Hudson Belk store is dominant, unique and serves as the standard by which other Belk stores are judged. Even though the store achieved excellent sales figures with its former full-line merchandise mix, recent changes have removed department after department, including furniture. Now Belk wants to take away the last distinctive, endearing feature of the store for more clothing racks and a new entry. While I understand their position, I take issue with their assertion that the Capitol Room Cafeteria is unneeded.

Generations of Triangle families have depended of the Capitol Room for delicious food at reasonable prices. There is a lot of love for the place. So many good memories involve the Capitol Room, from first dates to family dinners to the finalization of business deals. Blaming the opening of The Cheesecake Factory at Crabtree on declining sales when no advertising or renovation of any form has been done on the Capitol Room’s behalf (and especially when the two restaurants defy comparison) is a weak attempt to explain a decision that is mostly being done, in my opinion, to further standardize the Belk chain.

The company made a similar move at SouthPark mall in Charlotte, closing the much loved Barclay cafeteria, alienating at least two generations of Charlotte shoppers, many of whom cut up their Belk charge cards in protest and vowed never to shop there ever again. Belk SouthPark used the same reason for closing as Hudson Belk is using today: too much competition and a shifting marketplace. The store still thrives, of course, but a major gaffe as I’ve described certainly caused Belk some public relations damage and made the store less enticing for families and the older generation, who by the way, faithfully spends its money at stores like Belk.

I feel there has to be a way to placate the needs of local diners while attracting new shoppers. Some form of traditional dining is needed not only at Hudson Belk at Crabtree, but would be an added amenity to all the larger Belk stores in the Triangle. Properly advertised, it could be a destination, much like Nordstrom’s café and eBar in Durham. In a 250,000 square foot store which I believed is owned by Belk, in a mall that wants to expand its dining options, there has to be room for something like this.