Burlington Stores has opened its newest location at 1810 N.E. Pine Island Road in Cape Coral.
The store, announced in late November, has opened in what had been a Sports Authority, which went out of business.
With 40,000 square feet, Burlington, formerly known as Burlington Coat Factory, features men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, accessories, shoes and an assortment of furniture, baby accessories and home decorations. The store also has what it billed as “the largest selection of coats in the nation at up to 65 percent off other retailers’ prices every day.”
The store will celebrate its grand opening at 9 a.m. Friday with giveaways and free massages from the neighboring Sports Clips barber shop.
“The response from the community has been fantastic,” said Saundra Petty, the assistant store manager of operations.
Burlington recently made a $10,000 donation to Dr. Carrie D. Robinson Littleton Elementary School in North Fort Myers.
The store planned on donating three pallets of clothing to a local nonprofit during the grand opening as well.
The store has plenty of options for Southwest Florida shoppers, said Petty, a Punta Gorda resident.
“What I think it’s going to bring to the community is a large selection,” Petty said. “It’s not only ladies' and men’s, but there’s a very large kids' department.”
On Friday morning the store also will be giving away umbrellas as well as tote bags to its first customers.
The store had a soft opening Wednesday evening for employees and their families as well as those passing through who saw the store had opened. Thursday through 10 p.m. marked the first full “soft” day open before the official grand opening Friday. The normal store hours will be 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The store will provide about 75 jobs, and Petty said she was still hiring. Applications can be found online at burlingtonstores.jobs.
“We’ve been getting phone calls all week,” Petty said of the buildup to the opening. “It’s been thrilling.”