Country-Western Retail Chain Tecovas Replacing Device Brewing in Ice Blocks

Initially, it might be difficult to imagine a demand for country-western fashion in Sacramento’s urban core.

Michael Heller of Heller Pacific, managing general partner of the Ice Blocks, had the same concern while considering the appeal of his latest tenant.

“At first I was skeptical,” he wrote in an email to the Business Journal. “Country western apparel in a city environment? Seemed out of place.”

Nonetheless, Heller moved forward with the tenant. That business, Tecovas Inc., will fill an R Street space previously occupied by Device Brewing Co. in the Ice Blocks development.

This will be the first Sacramento-area store for Austin, Texas-based Tecovas, which offers country-western apparel, accessories and boots for men and women. The company recently opened its 50th location and plans to open at least 12 new sites this year, trade publication Women’s Wear Daily reported last month. Its stores are in places such as Atlanta, Dallas and Denver.

Representatives from Tecovas declined to immediately comment on the Ice Blocks store, saying details would be released this fall.

The company calls itself the fastest-growing western brand in the world. “For the ultimate Tecovas experience, you must visit one of our stores. They are a feast for the senses where you’ll find the warm smell of leather, a Texas-sized smile, and if you’re thirsty, a cold beverage to enjoy while you shop,” its website states.

Tecovas’ popular “Annie” boots for women start at $345. The retailer recently collaborated with Chili’s Grill & Bar to sell boots “wrapped in 100% genuine Chili’s booth material,” according to Tecovas’ website.

Tecovas’ Ice Blocks lease offers some lessons about the current retail climate.

The lease shows that despite a recent string of big-box bankruptcies, not all retail vacancies are being filled by bars and restaurants.

“We have an abundance of really cool bars and restaurants in our city but what we lack are prestigious retailers that people genuinely love and are a regional draw,” Heller wrote. “Those are rare and hard to attract to Sacramento. So when the opportunity presents itself and there is interest, my team and I jump and are very aggressive courting them.”

He thinks the presence of Tecovas could attract other prominent retailers to the Ice Blocks development. “These unicorn type of national retailers all like being close to each other … We will continue to do everything in our power to keep bringing these types of retailers to Sacramento,” Heller wrote.

But is there a demographic in Midtown for what Tecovas offers? Heller thinks so.

“They studied the market well in advance of pursuing the Ice Blocks,” he wrote. “So I have to trust that they know their customers.”

According to Heller, the brand is also consistent with the trend of “experiential” retail — hosting in-person events that can’t be replicated online.

At Ice Blocks, Tecovas will fill a spot previously occupied by Device Brewing, which closed all its sites earlier this year. The former Device space is about 2,885 square feet, the Business Journal previously reported.