The Magic City has a lot of consumer options – retail, food, specialty items.

But there’s always that one name, or maybe more than one, that hasn’t quite made it here yet. If only we had…that… our lives would be complete, we think.

AL.com asked followers on social media what businesses they would like to see open in the Birmingham area. They weren’t short on opinions.

For starters, several people want pharmacies. Darryl Weatherspoon on Facebook suggested a Walgreens or CVS location downtown would be “perfect.”

“It would not only provide more convenience for residents but also create jobs and boost the local economy. Plus, it would be a great addition to the area’s revitalization efforts,” he wrote.

Read more: 17 businesses coming to Birmingham soon

Grocery stores were also popular, and not just the kind with cheap eggs. Nikki Sanguilocks suggested Wegman’s, a chain of stores headquartered in New York with more than 100 stores situated in eight mid-Atlantic states.

“Better prices than Publix, much bigger selection, cheaper prices, large size packages available on staple items,” Sanguilocks said.

Connie Yarber made a vote for Rouse’s Grocery, the Louisiana-based chain that has more than 60 stores, including seven in Alabama along the Gulf Coast.

Kathy Campbell Bowers wants a Kroger. The grocery has seven stores in Alabama, but it currently provides delivery services to the Birmingham area.

There were other suggestions, such as Terri Ross’ for H*E*B Grocery, which has more than 400 stores in Texas and Mexico. Michelle Berry wants Meijer, a Michigan-based chain that has more than 250 stores in the Midwest.

Lindy Minton Fuller is campaigning for a Trader Joe’s in Trussville. The chain currently has stores in Birmingham and Hoover, as well as Huntsville.

One reader didn’t care which grocery chain comes. Kelsey McClure just wants a grocery store for the 35212 zip code, which encompasses Woodlawn and Oak Ridge Park.

Branching out into retail, several readers lobbied for IKEA, the Scandinavian chain with ready-to-assemble furniture, as well as home decor options. The closest store currently is in Atlanta, though the company did purchase 25,000 acres in Lowndes County for timber back in 2018.

When it comes to retailers, several also mentioned Dillards. The store sells clothing and accessories at nine stores across Alabama, including Auburn, Dothan, Florence, Huntsville, Mobile, Montgomery, Oxford and Spanish Fort.

Skip Blicker wants a BJ’s Wholesale Club. It opened its first Alabama location almost two years ago in Madison.

The Birmingham area added Buc-ee’s several years ago, but a few readers now want convenience store chain Wawa to come. The chain opened its fourth Alabama store last year.

One reader put in a vote for the return of Superior Grill. The popular U.S. 280 Tex-Mex eatery closed back in 2022.

One chain that would be new to Birmingham would be Ground Round, a once-thriving fast casual chain that has shrunk to only a handful of locations, though a new one opened last year in Massachusetts.

Reader Windon Edge isn’t messing around with dining or retail. He wants manufacturing jobs with good pay and benefits for the Birmingham area.

“Birmingham has the infrastructure…rail, interstate hwy, utilities,” he wrote. “Birmingham has tried to invest in the entertainment and convention business. Birmingham is not Orlando, Las Vegas or Atlanta. Get back to your industrial roots. Talladega County got a major Honda plant. Vance got a Mercedes plant. Huntsville is attracting tech companies. These types of investments will do more to change economically challenged, high-crime communities than any amphitheater. Good jobs, good benefits equals less crime and urban decay.”