It’s a shopping jungle out there, but with the perfect location, a simple concept and a great deal of entrepreneurial spirit and persistence, Bob and Nita Emory’s multi-merchant gift, home furnishings, and design center BLACKLION, is a safari into unique territory. In October of 1995, Bob Emory convinced K-Mart to lease them the 68,000 square foot store at the corner of Park Road and Hwy 51 in Charlotte, NC. In this space, he envisioned the next generation of retailing: BLACKLION.

The concept was simple. A central gift and design center. The vision was to assemble 200 or so merchants offering upscale gifts, furniture and accessories, along with a cadre of local interior designers and an enormous selection of products, all in a one-stop shopping setting.