Waiting to reopen
Cape Breton shopping malls optimistic customers will return
SYDNEY — The economic downfall of COVID-19 has been felt by many businesses in Nova Scotia and shopping malls have been no exception.
Although no clear timeline has been given for reopening, Cape Breton shopping mall managers are optimistic customers will return to their facilities once restrictions are lifted by the province.
“There’s a beauty of going out and physically looking at product or grabbing a bite to eat at the food court,” said Mayflower Mall manager Greg Morrison.
“We have a plan to reopen, we’re waiting for the provincial government and health authority and will respect their guidance when that time comes.”
Despite more and more people shopping online in recent months, Morrison doesn’t believe it will affect the Grand Lake Road-based mall when the 70-store facility fully reopens.
“We have been dealing with online shopping for years,” said Morrison. “Our mall will be clean and we will focus on high traffic areas for our customers to have a safe environment to shop.”
The Sydney mall has had a plan ready in case of a pandemic like COVID-19 for many years, but as a manager, Morrison, who didn't elaborate on what exactly the plan was, hoped he'd never have to use it.
Although the stores inside the mall are closed, some stores with their own entrances are open to some degree and have curbside pick-up protocols for their customers. East Side Mario's (take out), Staples, Dollarama, Best Buy, Michael's and Pet Valu all remain open.
Mayflower Mall has been closed since March 22. When the building reopens, Morrison said individual stores will need to establish their own protocols, based on criteria from the government and the health authority.
“We will monitor the common area section of our mall,” said Morrison. “We will be there to assist should people have questions.”
In January, the mall announced the new addition of Old Navy. Morrison confirmed work is currently taking place at the former Urban Planet location and the business remains on schedule to open in the fall.
In Port Hawkesbury, the Port Hawkesbury Shopping Centre — like all malls — has also seen the majority of their non-essential businesses keep their doors closed, but not all.
The Paint Street facility has 22 tenants and currently has nine operating during the pandemic, including Barykin Café and Bakery. Essential businesses including Walmart and Giant Tiger are also open.
“It's a huge challenge keeping the public and staff safe,” said mall property manager Barbara Mackinnon, noting recreational walking is not permitted at the facility for the time being.
“We've installed hand sanitization stations throughout the mall and individual stores have their own restrictions in place.”
Mackinnon said the decision was up to each individual store, except for the hair salon at the location, to keep their businesses operating during the outbreak.
“They're dealing with their customers according to the government guidelines and have set distancing and have limited the amount of people in their store at one time,” said Mackinnon.
The question of whether the general public will be cautious when it comes to returning to crowded malls following the pandemic is one Mackinnon doesn't think will have a major effect.
“I think we're going to have a nice little boom when it's reopened,” said Mackinnon, who's been the manager for the past 17 years.
“We have an older population and we have a fixed income population – I'm sure we'll lose a few that found convenience online, but we're not overly concerned.”
Other shopping malls in Cape Breton are also feeling the effects of COVID-19. Stores at the North Sydney Mall and Sterling Mall in Glace Bay are also currently closed.