SALT LAKE CITY — A fifth-generation family-owned clothing store that has been a Salt Lake City staple for more than a century is looking for a new Salt Lake Valley location after the 2020 earthquake severely damaged its downtown store. It was decided to move to. It will be repaired and demolished.
After weeks of privately informing customers of its impending move, UWM Men's Shop (formerly known as Utah Woolen Mills) officially announced its relocation plans this week. A sign advertising a “closing sale” is currently posted in the window of the location at 59 W. South Temple.
UWM plans to open a new store near Fashion Place Mall at the corner of 6100 South and State in Murray, opening May 6, while the old store will gradually close over the next few weeks. . A farewell party to celebrate the business is scheduled for May 2, said company president BJ Stringham.
“This is a really big move for us,” he said. “We want to end this chapter with great expectations for the future, and we are excited about the future.”
Property Reserve, which owns the eight-story building, told KSL.com that the building, located between City Creek Center and Temple Square, will be demolished later this year due to earthquake risk. he said.
Father and son Henry and Bryant Stringham founded Utah Woolen Mills in 1905, offering woolen products and men's clothing based in downtown Salt Lake City. The company has remained family-owned and operated on the same block ever since, but moved to its current location in the late '70s after the construction of Crossroads Plaza obliterated the original building.
When construction began on City Creek Center in the 2000s, the second store was not saved as staff built around it to complete the mall more than a decade earlier.
Construction was just one of the challenges along the way. In an open letter about the impending move, the Stringham family noted that there have been “countless ups and downs” over the past 119 years. The family-owned business survived two global pandemics, two world wars, the Great Depression, and multiple recessions. Stringham said the company has recorded record sales since 2022.
But the 5.7 magnitude earthquake that rocked the Salt Lake Valley in 2020 proved to be the biggest hurdle, at least for the company's time in Salt Lake City. Property Reserve spokesman Dale Bills said a structural engineering firm inspected the building and identified “seismic risks” after the quake.
In a statement to KSL.com, Bills explained that they decided to demolish the building after determining that the necessary repairs and seismic upgrades would be “cost-prohibitive.” At the time this decision was made, UWM was the last remaining tenant at the facility, as the building's primary tenant, Deseret Book, moved out in 2019.
This appears to be the second building to be demolished due to the earthquake. State historians noted that the Sears House, a historic home in Salt Lake City's Liberty Wells neighborhood, was the only historic building damaged enough to be demolished after the earthquake.
The Stringham family said they wanted to continue operating the business downtown, but they agreed to vacate the business by July, ending negotiations. They are now looking forward to building their first new home in over 45 years.
“As cliché as it may sound, it's not you, it's us,” the family said in an open letter to Salt Lake City. “We must be true to ourselves and move to a place where we are the captains of our own destiny. We must own our property and truly control our future. I'm trying to move to a place where I have control, like when my great-great-grandfather and his son were involved in an incident. This business.”
Murray's new store has some advantages and disadvantages, BJ Stringham said. Floor room sizes are about the same as the downtown location, parking is plentiful, and although it's adjacent to another major Salt Lake Valley shopping center, it doesn't have the same amount of storage space.
As a result, UWM Men's Shop is currently holding a series of liquidation sales downtown since they can't bring everything to the new store. Currently, all items are listed for his 50% off, but after May 13th, the remaining items will be up to 90% off. Stringham said the store may eventually donate the items if they remain after the store officially closes.
Demolition of the Salt Lake City building is scheduled to begin later this year. Bills said the schedule is based on “the schedule of other major downtown construction that is already underway,” including renovations to Temple Square across the street.
Ms Stringham said her family hopes to make the most of the situation and create another 100 years of memories in Murray.
“I am proud of the legacy we have built and the legacy we continue to build,” he said. “I think a big indicator of our heritage is how we deal with adversity, and I want to be proud of that, too.”
