Hardwire Tattoo in Independence Mall gets ‘the boot’ without explanation

The short notice ahead of the Christmas Holiday created problems for Fischer, his family, his employees and their families.

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — If you’ve noticed that Independence Mall feels rather empty lately, you’re not alone.

While the mall has expanded and added major retailers such as Dick’s Sporting Goods and Five Below in recent years, local businesses that once thrived in the mall are now hurting.

Matt Fischer is the manager and partial owner of “Hardwire Tattoo” located inside of Independence Mall.

He says that on December 14th, he got a notice from the mall management that Hardwire Tattoo had to vacate the mall by December 31st.

The short notice ahead of the Christmas Holiday created problems for Fischer, his family, his employees and their families. This is especially because, according to Fischer, it was so arbitrary.

“There was no reason given, they just told us that we needed to vacate, that they didn’t renew our lease back in July, and that they chose, apparently, two weeks before Christmas to let us know that it was time for us to go.”

Fischer noted that when the mall notified him that the lease was not being renewed, he reached out several times for an explanation, and tried to negotiate with them to renew the lease. According to Fischer, an explanation was not given, and they were not notified until December 14th about an eviction date.

Hardwire Tattoo says that they have never been behind on rent, and have maintained professionalism with their business during their time at Independence Mall.

He has noticed that several other spots are already vacant throughout the mall, especially within the same wing.

“Right now, they’ve got about 19 stores vacant, like 1 in 4 stores inside are just a black curtain with an advertisement for another business.”

Fischer’s wife, Katie, also worked at Independence Mall for over a decade as a manager for Victoria’s Secret, which is now also closed.

“Cumulatively, our family has been providing ten plus years of revenue to this mall, supporting it, and supporting our story together. It’s really unfortunate that they just don’t care about the lives that actually got impacted by this business decision.”

She says she has seen similar situations with other stores in the mall, and while it’s always bad, it especially hurts this time of year.

Matt adds, “it’s a time of year that’s about family, and instead of being able to spend time with our family and going to visit our family and friends, we are relocating a business instead.”

We have reached out to Independence Mall for a statement on the matter, but have not yet heard back.

This is a developing story and will be updated as soon as more information becomes available.