New details were recently announced about where exactly the new Nintendo store in San Francisco will be located.

Last month, the video game giant announced plans to open a new store in Union Square.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, city permits indicate that the new store will be located at 331 Powell Street, right next to the Westin St. Francis San Francisco.

The Powell Street space has been vacant for the past few years and previously housed BCBG and athleisure brand FILA.

The new Union Square location will be the second Nintendo store in the United States and the first on the West Coast. The other U.S. location is at Rockefeller Center in New York City.

Nintendo plans to open its new location in San Francisco next year.

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• Tutt said she was left ‘crushed’ after incident in 2020 on one of the first times she venture out presenting as a woman
• The former WWE star is open about her transition from gladiator Tyler Reks to the woman she is today
•  She and her family moved from San Francisco to Austin, Texas in before the pandemic but said she has had largely positive experiences in the LGBTQ+ hostile state

Transgender WWE star Gabi Tutt has opened up about the moment she broke down in tears after a store clerk misgendered her.

The wrestler turned influencer explained how she was left feeling ‘crushed’ after the incident with a salesperson in 2020.

It took place on one of the first times Tutt, 45, decided to venture out dressed as as a woman and two months before she officially came out.

‘I bee-lined for my truck and cried for half an hour,’ Tutt told the San Francisco Chronicle. ‘I didn’t present (as) female for over a week — it crushed me.’ 

Tutt, who competed in the WWE as dreadlocked gladiator Tyler Reks, frequently shares images charting her transition.

Trans influencer Gabbi Tutt, who used to compete in WWE as Tyler Reks, shared she cried after a store clerk misgendered her The upsetting incident took place in 2020, before Tutt had officially come out and on one of the first occasions she presented as female In January that same year, she moved from from San Francisco to Austin, Texas , one of the least welcoming states for LGBTQ + people

In January 2020, she and her wife Priscilla along with their daughter Mia moved from San Francisco to Austin, Texas, one of the least welcoming states for LGBTQ+ people.

Tutt revealed that she learned to use a gun shortly after moving to the state, receiving lessons from an Army member neighbor.

And in 2021, she decided to attend a New Years Eve party ‘in full presentation’ after being invited by the same neighbor.

‘I walked in the door and got a standing ovation,’ Tutt said. 

While she acknowledged that her adoptive state has a bad reputation for trans rights, Tutt revealed that her experiences have markedly improved since the mall incident despite some online abuse.

The former wrestler also said her ability to get gender affirming procedures saved her life.

‘I would wake up every day feeling miserable, feeling like my life was incomplete,’ Tutt said. ‘And my heart breaks for every transgender human who is going through that.’ 

Tutt told how even as a child she would dress up in her mother’s clothes and gravitate towards girls toys.

Tutt’s wife Priscilla supported her transition, although the two are now in the process of separating The influencer shared how she learned to handle a gun after moving to Texas The 45-year-old was positive about her experiences in Texas, although recognized her wealth and privilege have allowed her to receive gender affirming procedures which have helped with the transition

But she buried her impulses after realizing they could get her in trouble. During puberty, she got into weightlifting and was scouted as a possible WWE star.

Tutt, performing as Reks, went on to have a career which spanned from 2008 to 2012, boasting appearances at Smackdown, Raw and Wrestlemania.

However, during the pandemic she was able to reflect on her gender identity and went on to transition.

‘I ask myself to this day, what made those feelings resurface at 36 years old,’ Tutt said. ‘And I haven’t been able to figure it out.’ 

Today, Tutt although in the process of splitting from her wife, runs a successful fitness business largely training women.

Priscilla has been supportive of Tutt’s transition and encouraged her to come out, while she remains close with Mia.

‘People will say, ‘You’re getting divorced, Gabbi,’ and yeah, the fairy-tale ending doesn’t always happen,’ Tutt said. ‘But I’m a successful businesswoman and I have a child who is well loved, and I am a trans woman.’ 

Tutt frequently shares insights into her transition, and hopes to be an example for other trans women.

Tutt frequently shares her journey as well as her fitness and lifestyle tips with her fans She told how she buried her feminine impulses as a child, only for them to bubble up again during the pandemic, prompting her transition Today the former wrestler has an active community of supporters and runs a successful fitness business Tutt is open about her journey, sharing everything from videos of her recovery from facial feminization surgery and the effects of hormone therapy and midlife puberty.

She now has 124,000 followers on Instagram, and shares her journey as well as her fitness and lifestyle tips with her fans. 

She has discussed everything from videos of her recovery from facial feminization surgery and the effects of hormone therapy and midlife puberty.

‘I understand what it feels like to walk out in public with no confidence, to fear what people might say or do or how they might look at you,’ Tutt said. ‘The solution is learning to love who you are on the inside. And we first must accept who we are.’ 

However, not all aspects of her transition have been smooth. 

During the summer, Tutt revealed that she was missing WWE more than she anticipated and expressed disappointment that she was ‘blocked’ from going backstage at Smackdown at Madison Square Garden.

A representative for WWE told NYTimes that the issue was caused by a ‘shortage of tickets,’ but an exception still wouldn’t be made to go backstage.

The post Transgender WWE star Gabbi Tutt, 45, reveals the second she broke down in tears when retailer clerk misgendered her and the way she discovered to make use of a handgun after transferring from San Francisco to anti-LGBTQ Texas appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

SAN FRANCISCO — For more than 40 years, Jim Siegel has been doing what he loves on Haight Street in San Francisco. Distractions, a legacy business, is one of the famed neighborhood’s oldest shops. Sunday was his last day in business. 

“It’s bittersweet, I love the Haight Ashbury with all my heart. I opened up this business not to make money but to bring the Haight Ashbury back. It had very much been in a state of decline in the early 1970s,”  Siegel said. 

In the display window of Distractions, the clothing and costume shop he opened in 1982, there’s a 1976 photo of Siegel standing outside White Rabbit, his first store on Haight Street.

Siegel says the store was thriving up until the pandemic hit. Burning Man always led to a huge boost in sales, averaging around $200,000 every August. 

This year, he brought in less than half of that: $90,000.

“The city’s been in a little bit of a decline since COVID. A lot of it is the news media … the big news media saying ‘Don’t come to San Francisco.’ It’s criminal,” he said. “I haven’t been robbed in this store since 1982 was the last time I got robbed at gunpoint. In the 70s it was bad here and I did get robbed at gunpoint and knifepoint. The crime isn’t anything like that at all anymore. You know it’s property crime.”

Jim said online shopping has taken a chunk of his business but the biggest hit came after COVID. Tourists still haven’t returned.

His monthly rent is $7,000. 

“Sales have been going down and I just realized I’m old and I was hoping some new blood would buy this store. I was trying to sell this store or give it to my employees and it needed to be reinvented a little bit and that isn’t happening,” Siegel said.

He said employees don’t have enough money to keep the store going.

On Sunday, everything in Distractions was half off.

San Francisco native Noah Dewald wandered into the store for the first time and scored a coat for his wizard costume for Halloween.

“I’ve seen a lot of mom-and-pop shops close down in the city and it’s always sad to me but it sounds like it’s the owner’s choice and he’s moving on with his life,” Dewald said. 

“Everything I wear I got from Jimmy. This hat I got 17 years ago,” said a longtime customer, who goes by “Pappa Bear.”

He’s been stopping in multiple times a week for 25 years.

“This store is going to be missed because there’s not another store like that,” he said. 

Siegel said he will hold a special event at his store Tuesday morning at 11 o’clock. 

He still believes the Haight is a flourishing neighborhood.

“This store has blessed me very well. I invested all in real estate over the years so I’m set for life and I can afford to retire now at 67,” he added. “I’ll be more of a hippie now that I’ve retired. It’s in my heart. I will always be a hippie.”

Betty Yu

Betty Yu joined KPIX 5 in November 2013 as a general assignment reporter. She spent two years at WTVJ, the NBC-owned station in Miami, as a reporter before moving to San Francisco.

The post Eclectic San Francisco clothes retailer closes after 41 years appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

Photo on Visualhunt.com

A man who robbed a grocery store in South San Francisco at gunpoint Jan. 27 was sentenced to two years state prison after pleading no contest to one count of felony robbery Thursday, June 29, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

Jesus Enrique Lopezalvardo, 35, of South San Francisco, entered the Joyeria La Tina Store at 319 Grand Ave. in South City with an unidentified accomplice and ordered a customer to the floor, racking a gun. He jumped over the counter and demanded money. The store owner turned over $15,000 and Lopezalvarado fled the store but the license plate of the fleeing vehicle was registered to his brother’s name. He was found in Los Angeles and arrested on a warrant, according to the DA’s Office.

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A San Francisco women’s boutique clothing store visited by celebrities including Alanis Morissette, Courtney Love and Steven Tyler will be closing its Marina location in October after operating the spot for nearly two decades.

Ambiance owners Donna and Kieran O’Leary have decided to retire after the couple turned 69 years old in January and December. 

Only the Marina location faces closure, which is slated to happen around mid-October, according to a letter the owners sent to the store’s newsletter subscribers.

The Inner Sunset location at 756 Irving St. will stay in business as Ambiance’s only remaining store. The location has been sold to the store manager and Ambiance’s director of operations. New co-owner Gwen Lee-Rios declined to comment when reached by phone due to the store being too busy.

San Francisco women’s boutique Ambiance has sold women’s clothing since 1983, operating six stores in that time. The Marina location, pictured above, will close in October. | Source: Donna O’Leary

Both locations will have blowout sales—starting with 25% off everything in the store. The sales will be exclusive to subscribers on their first days. After that, the sales will open to the public, and prices will continue to drop until everything is sold, the letter to customers said. 

The Inner Sunset store’s sale starts Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., while the Marina store sale begins Sept. 14.

Donna O’Leary said she was relieved to step back, but called the departure bittersweet.

“People think it’s glamorous because it’s fashion, but retail is a lot of work,” O’Leary said. “It’s time for a new generation to take over.”

O’Leary said she doesn’t know the new owners’ plans for the Inner Sunset store, but whatever direction they take, she hopes they will continue the store’s practice of offering fashion advice, which she calls key to good customer service. 

“They’ve got to stay true to Ambiance,”  O’Leary said. “The name means something to San Francisco.” 

Ambiance, a San Francisco legacy business, had multiple locations over its 40 years of serving San Francisco, first opening in Haight-Ashbury at 1458 Haight St. in 1983. A second store opened in Noe Valley on 3985 24th St. in 1999 before moving up the block in 2014.  Stores in the Marina and Inner Sunset followed in 2002 and 2011. The O’Learys took over ownership in 1996 from founder Gloria Garret.

The store is known for its vintage-inspired clothing and accessories including purses, blouses, jackets and dresses.

The original Haight Street store saw its share of celebrity visitors.

O’Leary remembers Steven Tyler’s visit, which she said happened in the early 2000s when Aerosmith was in San Francisco for a concert. She said the rock starr signed autographs and took pictures with fans.

“He was the biggest sweetheart,” O’Leary said.

Alanis Morrisette also shopped there several times throughout the early 2000s, often when she was playing in San Francisco while on tour, according to  O’Leary.

“She would just stand in line like a regular customer,” O’Leary said.

The original Haight Street store closed in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic, but  O’Leary said she is glad at least one store will carry on.

“I’m really glad Ambiance will carry on in San Francisco and make women beautiful,” she said.

The post San Francisco Ambiance Clothes Retailer Closing After 19 Years appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

Whole Foods, Old Navy and Nordstrom have closed area stores in recent months.

August 9, 2023, 11:04 AM ET

• 5 min read

IKEA, the global furniture giant, will open a store in downtown San Francisco later this month, the company announced on Tuesday, defying an onrush of retail departures that has slammed the city center in recent years.

Located blocks away from the city’s Union Square retail hub, the store will anchor a new mall owned by Ingka Centres, an IKEA-affiliated developer that seeks to drive shopping traffic toward company stores.

The new, sprawling three-story store will span a combined 52,000 square feet, featuring 27 fully-furnished room displays tailored for city dwellers, IKEA said.

The announcement bucks a trend of retailers exiting downtown San Francisco.

In recent months, a slew of closures of retail stores in San Francisco doubles as a roundup of well-known shopping brands: Whole Foods, Old Navy and Nordstrom, among others.

In June, the 70-store downtown Westfield Mall said it would stop making payments on a $558 million loan, relinquishing ownership of the shopping center and leaving the fate of the complex uncertain.

Nearly half of the stores in the city’s downtown shopping district have closed since 2019, the San Francisco Standard found in May.

The series of store departures has spurred criticism focused on crime and homelessness but a more complicated set of forces is driving companies away from the city, experts and a former downtown store owner previously told ABC News.

They pointed to sluggish sales at some stores due in part to a longstanding shift away from brick-and-mortar retail that went into overdrive during the pandemic, they added. The rise of remote work — a trend even more pronounced in the Bay Area’s tech industry — also has slashed the number of office commuters downtown, they said.

A “For Lease” sign at a storefront on Market Street in San Francisco, May 3, 2023.Bloomberg via Getty Images

Despite the trend, IKEA San Francisco Market Manager Arda Akalin voiced optimism about the store opening in a statement.

“We are so excited to open the doors of our new IKEA store to our neighbors in the San Francisco area,” Akalin said on Tuesday. “We appreciate the excitement and support from the community and can’t wait for our customers to experience the new store full of affordable home furnishings and solutions that reflect who San Franciscans are and how they live.”

In a statement to ABC News, San Francisco Mayor London Breed celebrated the new IKEA store.

“The arrival of IKEA on Market Street is a tremendous boost for our City that will bring more shopping, jobs, and excitement to the Union Square area,” Breed said. “We have been working closely with IKEA to make this a successful opening and we will continue to work to make the area clean, safe, and welcoming for all.”

“We know the future of Downtown will look different, but we also know that San Francisco is a resilient city that embraces change and is always working to build what comes next. We are proud to welcome IKEA to be part of that future,” Breed added.

In June, Breed told Good Morning America that San Francisco faces difficulties but she also faulted a disproportionate focus on exits from the city.

“San Francisco is a major city and it has challenges,” Breed said. “But let’s back up a little bit. You are talking about people who are leaving the city but not the people who are staying, expanding, coming to San Francisco.”

The San Francisco area already plays host to two IKEA stores, the company said. A store in nearby Emeryville, California, opened in 2000; and a store in East Palo Alto followed in 2003.

The forthcoming store in downtown San Francisco will open on Aug. 23.

“On grand opening day, IKEA customers can enjoy games, workshops, giveaways,” the company said.

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San Francisco’s downtown corridor has spent a lot of time in the spotlight lately, mostly for the wrong reasons. Dozens of stores have either left or plan to leave due to theft and other criminal activity. 

But furniture company IKEA plans to buck that trend by opening a store there on August 23. 

The familiar blue and yellow signs have already been posted for some time at 945 Market Street, where the company will soon occupy three floors. 

“I’m excited because we don’t have one around here,” says Nyrah Allen Home, a San Francisco resident. 

But few people are more excited than SF Supervisor Matt Dorsey, whose district houses the new store. 

“The folks at IKEA, I think, agree with me that San Francisco is poised for a comeback,” said Dorsey. “And they’re bullish on being a retailer here in San Francisco..” 

The store will be the first of its kind in the U.S., according to the company, with a focus on what it calls “small space living.”

At 52,000 feet, the Market Street store will be significantly smaller than traditional IKEA stores in other places around the state. But IKEA’s parent company has said that the upper floors of the building will eventually become a co-working space with a food hall. 

While the announcement has many excited, it’s also meeting with some skepticism from people who live and work in the neighborhood. 

“I don’t think there’s going to be a bunch of business, I don’t think so. Because a lot of people don’t like being in this area because of all the drugs and everything that’s going on, so, I don’t know.” said Tippany Jackson, who works in the neighborhood.

“They need security to keep the guy that’s crapping in the corner out, you know,” said Sabra Hart, a San Francisco resident. 

The store does plan to have private security at the doors and loss prevention workers throughout the store, according to an IKEA news release. 

The area has seen a run of other retailers leaving, including the Nordstroms in the nearby Westfield Mall and an Old Navy Store which is planning to move to a smaller space in a different neighborhood. 

Dorsey acknowledged the on-going issues in the neighborhood as well as other concerns. 

“Aside from some of the safety challenges and reputation issues that San Francisco has, there’s also a lot of street construction, “ he said. “There’s a better Market Street plan that’s going on right now.”

But he hopes that IKEA will be a key partner in helping to revitalize the struggling neighborhood.

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IKEA, the global furniture giant, will open a store in downtown San Francisco later this month, the company announced on Tuesday, defying an onrush of retail departures that has slammed the city center in recent years.

Located blocks away from the city’s Union Square retail hub, the store will anchor a new mall owned by Ingka Centres, an IKEA-affiliated developer that seeks to drive shopping traffic toward company stores.

The new, sprawling three-story store will span a combined 52,000 square feet, featuring 27 fully-furnished room displays tailored for city dwellers, IKEA said.

The announcement bucks a trend of retailers exiting downtown San Francisco.

In recent months, a slew of closures of retail stores in San Francisco doubles as a roundup of well-known shopping brands: Whole Foods, Old Navy and Nordstrom, among others.

MORE: San Francisco’s retail hub is turning into a ghost town. The exodus isn’t just about crime, experts say

In June, the 70-store downtown Westfield Mall said it would stop making payments on a $558 million loan, relinquishing ownership of the shopping center and leaving the fate of the complex uncertain.

Nearly half of the stores in the city’s downtown shopping district have closed since 2019, the San Francisco Standard found in May.

The series of store departures has spurred criticism focused on crime and homelessness but a more complicated set of forces is driving companies away from the city, experts and a former downtown store owner previously told ABC News.

They pointed to sluggish sales at some stores due in part to a longstanding shift away from brick-and-mortar retail that went into overdrive during the pandemic, they added. The rise of remote work — a trend even more pronounced in the Bay Area’s tech industry — also has slashed the number of office commuters downtown, they said.

PHOTO: A ‘For Lease’ sign at a storefront on Market Street in San Francisco, May 3, 2023. (Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Despite the trend, IKEA San Francisco Market Manager Arda Akalin voiced optimism about the store opening in a statement.

Story continues

“We are so excited to open the doors of our new IKEA store to our neighbors in the San Francisco area,” Akalin said on Tuesday. “We appreciate the excitement and support from the community and can’t wait for our customers to experience the new store full of affordable home furnishings and solutions that reflect who San Franciscans are and how they live.”

In a statement to ABC News, San Francisco Mayor London Breed celebrated the new IKEA store.

“The arrival of IKEA on Market Street is a tremendous boost for our City that will bring more shopping, jobs, and excitement to the Union Square area,” Breed said. “We have been working closely with IKEA to make this a successful opening and we will continue to work to make the area clean, safe, and welcoming for all.”

“We know the future of Downtown will look different, but we also know that San Francisco is a resilient city that embraces change and is always working to build what comes next. We are proud to welcome IKEA to be part of that future,” Breed added.

MORE: Whole Foods closes flagship San Francisco store over employee safety concerns

In June, Breed told Good Morning America that San Francisco faces difficulties but she also faulted a disproportionate focus on exits from the city.

“San Francisco is a major city and it has challenges,” Breed said. “But let’s back up a little bit. You are talking about people who are leaving the city but not the people who are staying, expanding, coming to San Francisco.”

The San Francisco area already plays host to two IKEA stores, the company said. A store in nearby Emeryville, California, opened in 2000; and a store in East Palo Alto followed in 2003.

The forthcoming store in downtown San Francisco will open on Aug. 23.

“On grand opening day, IKEA customers can enjoy games, workshops, giveaways,” the company said.

IKEA to open store in downtown San Francisco this month, defying retail exodus originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

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A shoplifter sprayed a fire extinguisher inside a SoMa Trader Joe’s late Thursday afternoon, according to staff.

An aisle containing beer, chips and dog treats was blocked off by shopping carts and tables on Thursday and Friday.

“Please do not enter—fire extinguisher discharged and we need to dispose of the product,” read a sign placed at the end of the aisle Friday.

Staff were seen throwing dozens of garbage bags full of food into the back of a truck parked outside the store on Friday afternoon.

Grocery store workers said a man attempted to shoplift before being caught in the act, and he then sprayed the fire extinguisher inside the store, contaminating products.

READ MORE: Trader Joe’s Names Its Best Products of 2023. Five Longtime Faves Left the List

Workers throw out dozens of garbage bags filled with food contaminated by a fire extinguisher. | Garrett Leahy/The Standard

Police said officer responded to Ninth Street between Bryant and Brannan streets for a report of vandalism Thursday at around 5:50 p.m. Officers met with an employee who said a man entered the store, grabbed a fire extinguisher and sprayed it inside.

The suspect fled the scene before police arrived. No injuries were reported and no arrests have been made, police said.

Trader Joe’s staff declined to provide further details of the incident or the amount of food lost. Trader Joe’s corporate office did not respond to requests for comment by publication time.

The incident at the SoMa Trader Joe’s comes as a new Porsche dealership nearby was vandalized just days before it was set to open.

On May 24, Cole Hardware announced on it would shutter its SoMa store at at 345 Ninth St. just a few blocks away from the new luxury dealership. The company’s CFO blamed a declining customer base and concerns over security, after a 25% off closing-down sale.

In February, Samy’s Camera on the corner of Ninth and Bryant streets also closed its doors. Ace Plumbing and Rooter Inc. now occupies Samy’s former location.

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A man accused of three felonies while robbing a liquor store in South San Francisco was arrested Wednesday, June 7, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

Gerardo Alvarez, 18, allegedly walked into Sunshine Liquors and took several packs of hard lemonade and White Claws and walked out of the store without paying. He was confronted outside the store and Alvarez allegedly threw two cans at the victims, hitting one of them.

Two other clerks chased after Alvarez who allegedly punched one of the clerks twice before fleeing. An hour later, Alvarez allegedly returned to the liquor store and asked the clerk why he didn’t just let him leave with the liquor. Alvarez allegedly threatened to kill the victim and pulled out what appeared to be a black handgun. When police located Alvarez, he had a black BB gun and a 10-inch knife with a 5-inch blade, according to the DA’s Office.

Alvarez appeared in court Friday, June 9, and pleaded not guilty to robbery, felony threats and felony possession of a dagger. He remains in custody and his bail is set at $50,000. His next court appearance is set for June 23 for preliminary hearing.

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