Optopolis' Retail News

Facebook logos added to the old Cheyenne Community Connections banner for context. On October 2nd, 2024, Tammy Cooley, owner and admin of a popular local FaceBook community group in Cheyenne, discovered her group was permanently deleted by Facebook. She created a new community group, which you can join here . Keep reading for more information about Cheyenne Community Connections and what happened. An overview of Cheyenne Community Connections Cheyenne Community Connections is a local group run by Tammy Cooley on Facebook. She opened the original group page about twelve years ago, and it amassed over fifty thousand members. Her group has arguably provided an unprecedented amount of value over the years to so many different people in and around Cheyenne, including Optopolis. The group is a convenient place to find out what's happening in Cheyenne, whether it's stores that are opening or closing, traffic delays due to car crashes and other traffic-related incidents, events

This sign can be seen on the east side of Pershing Marketplace - Optopolis Cookie chain Dirty Dough and nail salon We Do Nails are anticipated to open in a new building that recently broke ground at Pershing MarketPlace along North College Drive and East Pershing Boulevard. Recent events with Pershing MarketPlace Around the end of the 2010s , new businesses were being built at the site of the soon-to-be Pershing MarketPlace, including a second QDOBA, Dog Haus, a second DazBog Coffee, and various other businesses. Since 2019, a number of new businesses have opened in Pershing MarketPlace including but not limited to North Platte Physical Therapy (moved here), Pizza Hut (moved here), Verizon (moved here), Firehouse Subs (New Business), and Cheyenne Pack & Ship (New Business). Pershing MarketPlace plaza sign seen next to Qdoba - Optopolis The Verizon dealer/shop closed and was later taken over by AT&T. Dog Haus Biergarten closed and has since reopened under new ownership .

One panel of the Grand Gulch Gems sign - Optopolis This one admittedly went a little under the radar here at Optopolis; a shop known as Grand Gulch Gems on East 8th Avenue closed a little while back, and now, a locally-owned daycare known as Lighthouse Learning Center is renovating and expanding into the space. A glimpse at the history Grand Gulch Gems and its closure Originally owned by James Haddenham, Grand Gulch Gems was initially filed with the state of Wyoming in 2016; it opened on July 19th, 2017 as confirmed by Facebook posts made by two Cheyenne residents at the time ( Sidney M. posted about it , and Jessie T. recorded a short video of the store ). Store advertisements seen in Cheyenne Traders indicate that the shop offered geodes, rocks, gems, fossils, pewter mining scenes, and more. Around 2018, things took an unfortunate twist that led to James Haddenham passing away, leaving the property in the hands of James' son. Fortunately, the store didn't totally disappear

The Picklr logo seen on their Loveland storefront - Optopolis Pickleball chain The Picklr is now actively working toward plans to expand to Cheyenne. Expected to hold a grand opening in December, they will be taking over the old Big Lots space in Cheyenne Plaza--the space previously occupied by Spirit Halloween and DKG's Annual Used Book Sale. A glimpse at the old Big Lots in Cheyenne Plaza Not to be confused with the nearby closing Big Lots in Parkway Plaza , the old Big Lots in Cheyenne Plaza has mostly been vacant since 2019 when Big Lots moved across the parking lot to the former Hobby Lobby. Prior to Big Lots, this space was occupied by Pic-N-Save as confirmed by City Directories. Spirit Halloween occupied the space in 2023, followed by Delta Kappa Gamma in early 2024. In recent years, the space has been occupied by Delta Kappa Gamma's Annual Used Book Sale ( 2020 , 2022 , and 2024 ) and Spirit Halloween ( 2021 , 2022 , and 2023 ). Both of these occupants will have to fi

Marky's exterior sign on their new Cheyenne store - Optopolis In February 2024, Gering-based Marky's Meat Market announced plans to open their second store, located in Downtown Cheyenne on E 19th St near Warren Avenue, and they are officially set to open this Friday! Recent events and what's Marky's Back in the year 2022, Wyoming Ranch Foods expanded to Cheyenne , opening in the vacant space next door to Winters Griffith Architect's downtown office, but WRF closed in late 2023. Less than a year later in early 2024, Marky's Meat Market announced plans to open a Cheyenne store. Coming soon sign seen at the soon-to-be Marky's, seen in June - Optopolis Marky's Meat Market is a family owned meat market/butcher shop based out of Gering, Nebraska (just south of Scottsbluff). They take pride in "only offering aged, high choice meats." In late February 2024, they began the process of preparing their Cheyenne shop. They originally wanted to open on April

Old Kum & Go/Go Fresh Market sign sits next to newly installed Maverik sign - Optopolis Maverik has rebranded the Cheyenne stores, and the Cheyenne-themed ampersand ("&") sculpture previously located at the Dell Range location has been saved. Maverik to retire Kum & Go, begins rebranding stores Maverik was set to only rebrand Kum & Go in the four main states where there was overlap between the two brands (in Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Idaho), but they decided they want to retire Kum & Go entirely by 2025. This has been a point of mild controversy on the internet with some people saying they shouldn't rebrand any Kum & Go stores, others saying they should've stuck with the original plan to partially rebrand, and others yet saying they should retire Kum & Go entirely. In spite of the debate on the internet, Maverik has already long-since begun the rebrand process. Utah stores were rebranded to Maverik earlier this year. Kum & Go in t

Sideways Ziggi's Coffee sign hangs off the side of City Center Building - Optopolis Ziggi's Coffee just put out an announcement on their Thomes Avenue Facebook page, stating that the location will be closing permanently. It operated for less than two years. A glimpse at recent events with Ziggi's Ziggi's Coffee first made their way into Cheyenne with a drive-thru-only location on Yellowstone Road that opened at the end of July 2021. They expanded in 2023 to a second location inside of the City Center building that Western Vista Credit Union currently occupies; this is on the corner of Thomes Avenue and West 20th Street, across from the Cheyenne Civic Center. This location didn't have a drive thru, but did feature a small dining room and was set to feature a walk-up window. The walk-up window at Ziggi's on Thomes was installed as of July 20th, 2023 - Optopolis The Thomes Avenue Ziggi's Coffee opened on February 21st, 2023 . Western Vista and Ziggi's hel

Sprouts billboard advertises the day the Cheyenne store is set to open, November 22nd - Optopolis Cheyenne's Sprouts Farmers Market, a chain that labels itself as an "organic and natural food store," is nearing completion and is planning to open near Prairie Avenue in late November 2024! Previous events with Bed Bath and Beyond The soon-to-be Sprouts store front, officially located on Rue Terre, is a former Bed Bath and Beyond that was built in 2007. In early February 2023 , Cheyenne's Bed Bath and Beyond began the process of their store closing sale prior to being added to the official, public list of closing Bed Bath and Beyond stores. Bed Bath and Beyond closed the Cheyenne store on April 23rd, 2023, the same day that the chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy . Store closing banners seen after hours one night on the then-closing Bed Bath and Beyond - Optopolis For the duration of the 2023 Halloween season, Spirit Halloween temporarily used this space for their seco