Mexicali Blues owner Pete Erskine plans to replace the retail chain’s Newcastle home with a “better performing, better looking, better overall store more reflective of who Mexicali Blues is.”
Pending municipal approval, Erskine wants to start work in March 2012. During construction, inventory and staff will move into a Twin Villages location to be determined. Following the move, contractors will demolish the existing building and “replace it as quickly as possible,” Erskine said.
The design isn’t ready yet, but Erskine envisions a “unique, Balinese-inspired Mexicali Blues building” with “a lot of natural light” and “a lot of landscaping outside.”
The shorter, deeper replacement building, with high ceilings and more square footage, will stand on the footprint of the long, narrow existing building.
The design, closer to a square than a long, thin rectangle, will make it “easier to shop, easier to watch, easier for everything,” Erskine said.
Mexicali Blues moved into a space in the Rt. 1 building in 1997, after two years at the present-day location of King Eider’s Pub. At the time, four tenants occupied the building. Gradually, Mexicali Blues annexed the other units and bought the building.
“It’s not a very good looking building,” Erskine said. “We want our store to represent us better.”
“Aesthetically, [the new building will] be a much nicer building,” Erskine said.
The existing building also has “issues,” he said. “It’s beyond rehabilitation.”
The project will also include the elimination of parking in front of the building and, in its place, the construction of a road and parking lots behind.
The single access point will dramatically improve safety. “As it is now, it’s a free for all,” Erskine said. “Ten different people can pull out at once.”
The present set-up also costs the store business. “If all the parking spaces are taken, no one’s going to turn around and come back,” Erskine explained. “If everyone’s parked in the back, there’s more than adequate parking for everyone.”
The construction comes at a time of company-wide growth. Mexicali Blues opened a store in Bangor this year, joining the Newcastle location, three others in Freeport, Portland and Raymond and a thriving Internet storefront.
The company’s success revolves around its model of stocking what Erskine describes as “responsibly imported, unique and affordable” goods.
Pete and Kim Erskine founded Mexicali Blues in 1988, opening a store in Portland and borrowing the business’s name from a Grateful Dead song.
The company’s business model contributes to its success. “We buy things at a better price,” Erskine said. “Instead of going to trade shows, I’ll go to the markets directly… We’re skipping a couple steps and bringing it directly to our customers.”
The markets Erskine is talking about are spread across the world. He recently returned from Indonesia and will travel to Thailand and Nepal early next month.
Erskine carefully chooses the products that will bear the Mexicali Blues label. “We try to have culturally significant, unique items,” he said.
“None of this would be possible without a fantastic team working together,” Erskine said. The company attracts good people who “enjoy working here” and are aware of “what we’re trying to achieve,” he said.
“Everything’s going great,” Erskine said.
