WISEBUYS OPENS IN PULASKI; BARGAIN SHOPPERS FLOOD STORE'S GRAND OPENING SATURDAY.(Local)
From: The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) Date: April 4, 2004
Byline: Chris Iven Staff writer
Jim Phillips has been getting a lot of hugs and kisses recently, and all he did was open a store.
On Saturday, he watched as shoppers streamed in for the grand opening of the WiseBuys store he manages in Pulaski. It's in the same space where Phillips managed the Ames department store until that chain folded in October 2002.
For the residents of northern Oswego County, WiseBuys is more than just a store, however.
It's the only department store within about 30 miles, drawing shoppers from throughout Oswego and Jefferson counties. It also employs 60 people, about half of whom worked at the store under Ames.
Phillips said he's been through many grand openings in his 33 years working retail, but none so joyous for him or his customers.
"We've never been so well-received as we have here," Phillips said. "The public's just so happy ... It's nice to meet old friends."
The Pulaski store is the third of five planned for the WiseBuys chain, based in Gouverneur.
The store features closeout name-brand clothing, a Payless Shoe Source, sewing supplies, electronics and a sporting goods department aimed to capitalize on the area's reputation for trophy fishing. Fishing rods and Abercrombie & Fitch shirts sell for $10 each.
Carl Groff walked in wearing shoes that cost him $117. He walked out carrying a similar-looking pair of shoes that cost $19.
"I figure, if they hurt my feet, I'll just throw them in the trash," said Groff, of Copenhagen.
Josh Trumble and Margaret Gibbs, of the town of Richland, were able to choose from a variety of shoes for their infant daughter Jasmine, who slept through the couple's WiseBuys tour on Trumble's shoulder. No place around has such a selection, they said.
"Their clothes are fabulous, and the prices are low," said Gibbs, who formerly worked at the Wal-Mart SuperCenter in Central Square.
WiseBuys clerks, all of whom wear red polo shirts, said they, too, are pleased with their new employer.
"The pay isn't what it should be, but they treat us well," said Joanne Blair, of Orwell, who had worked in the store for 16 years under Ames. She said she expects the pay to increase over time. "Sometimes you give a little, you get a little."
Diane Smith, a clerk for 23 years under Ames, said she found it easy to come back to work at WiseBuys.
"They have some different ideas - new and fresh," Smith said of the company. "It's better. They have a real nice attitude."
Smith said she likes working with some of her former colleagues.
"And the customers are really glad to have us back," Smith said. "It's kind of like coming home."
The store is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays and 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. other days.
Phillips said he expected sales at the Pulaski store Saturday to approach the $75,000 mark hit by the chain's Canton store when it opened in September. A typical day's business should be less than a third of that amount, he said.
Jay Young, of Ellisburg, said he hopes the new store will be able to compete with the ever-expanding Wal-Mart chain.
"This area needs something like this," Young said. "I just hope...they stay open."
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