INDIANAPOLIS — Foot traffic at brick-and-mortar malls across the country has declined steadily over the years — even before the pandemic — and tenants, including major anchor stores, have closed their doors, leaving significant gaps in mall occupancy. commercial.
In a look at the future of malls in Forbes, journalist Brin Snelling writes that even though malls are going through a period of reformation, that doesn’t mean shoppers don’t still find a purpose for malls. The real estate strategist writes that shoppers will still see a need to go to the mall in the future, but malls “will have to continue to adapt to keep new shoppers interested.”
Some malls, for example, have recently worked to evolve and ensure the use of essentials such as grocery stores and technology companies to keep up with younger generations.
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Although some malls have seen a drop in shoppers, a spokesperson for The Fashion Mall at Keystone, a Simon Property Group location, says they’ve seen nothing but growth in recent years.
“We’re continuing to see our shoppers come back. They’re looking to touch, try, buy. They want to feel, they want to see and they want to experience the purchase in person. And we’ve seen that not only are we continuing to go up, you know, the last few years. So we’re looking at this from a restaurant perspective and from a retail perspective,” Danielle Parker, director of marketing and business development, told WRTV.
WRTV Photo: Shakira Harris
Fashion Mall, a mall known for housing high-end and luxury brands, has added several new tenants to its east and west wings and Fashion Cafe over the past 6 months.
In the mall’s coffee shop, shoppers will now find HoiTEA ToiTEA and Hard Truth Bar open. Sweetgreen will soon be joining the cafe offerings in the next couple of weeks as well.
Big Woods, the parent company of Hard Truth, will also open a restaurant in the cafe in the next two weeks, next to Shake Shack, which first opened in The Fashion Mall last year. Another upcoming dining option to look forward to is Doc B’s Restaurant and Bar.
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Recently opened shopping options include Levi’s, Nike, Gucci and Hammitt by Purse Strings. L’Occitane will open in the coming weeks, and Evereve will open later this year.
“We’re really building those types of experiences and products that are the demographic here in Indianapolis, in the state of Indiana, we’re wanting to see,” Parker said. “There really is no other experience like The Fashion Mall.”
Parker says The Fashion Mall is thriving by continuing to do what it has done since it first opened.
“I would say The Fashion Mall’s goal is to continue to be the premier luxury shopping destination in Indiana. With over 100 brands, you see our goal as property owners is to continue to elevate the type of retail experiences you see inside our walls and bring new experiences and restaurants to the building as well,” said Parker.
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WRTV digital reporter Shakkira Harris can be reached at shakkira.harris@wrtv.com. You can follow him on Twitter, @shakkirasays.
