Stein Mart opens in Algonquin
The first Stein Mart store along the Randall Road corridor will open this week.
The national, off-price retailer, which sells designer and name-brand clothing, décor, accessories and shoes, has a grand opening celebration Thursday at its new Algonquin location.
The store, 215 S. Randall Road, fills the empty building that formerly housed Joann Fabric and Crafts before the craft store moved to a larger location south on Randall Road.
The 35,000-square-foot Stein Mart store will be in the River Pointe Shopping Center on the east side of Randall, in the same area as Jewel-Osco.
It will be the fifth Stein Mart location in the Chicago area, said Linda Tasseff, director of investor relations for Stein Mart. A sixth location in Willowbrook was expected to open at the same time as Algonquin, but its opening has been delayed until spring, Tasseff said.
The opening is part of the company's plan to open 10 new stores this year, Tasseff said.
The Randall Road location in Algonquin appealed to the company because of its proximity to other retailers.
"We like to be in better regional shopping centers with other retailers that appeal to our customers, so these centers were clear choices for us," Hunt Hawkins, chief executive officer of Stein Mart, said in a news release.
"We are grateful for our loyal customers in the Chicago area, and we look forward to serving them with another convenient location to shop. We look forward to introducing our customers to these new locations, where they will always find great values on the best designer and name brand merchandise in an attractive, easy-to-shop setting," Hawkins said.
The Algonquin grand opening begins at 8:30 a.m. with Beavers Coffee and Donuts giving out 400 servings of doughnuts and coffee.
There also will be a shopping bag giveaway, with the first 200 customers getting a free Stein Mart tote, whether they make a purchase or not.
The store also will be giving away gift cards. There will be one $500 gift card, two $250 gift cards, two $100 gift cards and six $50 gift cards given away at 1 p.m.
The store is expected to add 40 jobs to the community, store officials said.
For information, call (630) 513-5393.
• Amy Williams' column covers business news along Randall Road from Batavia to Crystal Lake. Contact her at randallbiz@comcast.net or (847) 894-5036.