Yeilding remains name in Birmingham retail with new venture, project at U.S. 280 and Alabama 119

Richard Yeilding

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – The man who once led one of Birmingham’s biggest names in shopping and later helped develop some of the metro area’s most successful retail projects has formed a new company that combines those experiences with an initial focus on a major new development at U.S. 280 and Alabama 119.

Richard B. Yeilding has started RBY Retail, a firm that combines his 25 years of retail experience and 18 years of real estate experience into his new work as a consultant, developer and tenant representative as he aims to be involved in shaping the future of Birmingham area retail.

Yeilding was the chief executive of Yeilding's from 1978 to 1996. Once one of the biggest names in Birmingham retail and one of the many downtown Birmingham retail landmarks for decades, the department store gave way to larger, national chains. Yielding then spent 18 years in commercial real estate with an emphasis on retail and restaurants, mostly with Colonial Properties Trust, which was acquired earlier this year by Mid-America Apartment Communities Inc.

Yeilding’s work with Colonial throughout the Sunbelt states enabled him to work on $60 million in new developments and $50 million in redevelopments, including Colonial Brookwood Village. He worked 30 different outparcel developments and numerous tenant transactions.

Richard Yeilding worked with Colonial Properties Trust on its successful renovation of Brookwood Village mall, to include the addition of restaurants like Brio. Now Yielding is the official agent for the restaurant group that includes Brio. (file)

“With nearly 40 years of experience, I’ve been able to see life from the viewpoint of a retailer and then work from the other side and see it as a developer,” Yeilding said in an interview. “I think I have a unique perspective and background.”

One of the first things on his plate is tackling a 78-acre site at the corner of U.S. 280 and Alabama 119. Yeulding is the exclusive development consultant for a planned mixed-use development that will put several retailers on the site along with some office space and residential sites.

Plans are being finalized and Yeilding said the developer should be ready to reveal development plans and name some of the stores in the coming weeks.

Transworld Business Advisors has also hired Yeilding as an advisor and consultant for businesses in central Alabama, with a focus on Birmingham and Tuscaloosa.

Yeilding is also the official tenant representative for the Bravo/Brio Restaurant Group in five states, including Alabama.

Yeilding reflected on the latest stage of his long career, remembering when he was a six-year-old boy selling peanuts to customers at the downtown Birmingham Yeilding’s store.

“I’ve seen a lot of changes in retail,” he said. “But a lot of what works and what’s important still holds true.”

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