OKC Outlets makes its debut
The Outlet Shoppes at Oklahoma City is now OKC Outlets.
A new name for the 34-acre development at Council Road and Reno Avenue was unveiled Monday by new owners in Las Vegas at RECon, which bills itself as the world’s largest real estate convention.
The Outlet Resource Group (TORG) in Maryland and Singerman Real Estate of Chicago announced May 1 they acquired the 34-acre development at Council Road and Reno Avenue from Horizon Group Properties and CBL & Associates for $130 million.
On Monday, David Hinkle, a principal with TORG, said the new name rebrands the project in a way that seeks to make it a bigger part of the community, adding TORG plans to make additional improvements to the project’s appearance to improve shoppers’ experience in an outlet shop environment.
“We really want to be part of the Oklahoma City community and be part of Oklahoma,” Hinkle said Monday. “We felt like, by our rebrand, we are certainly taking a step in that direction.”
As for coming changes to OKC Outlets, Hinkle said the owners plan to change the project’s color palate, for starters.
“We want something that is going to be more respectful to the commitment to
architecture that we see in the Oklahoma City community,” he said. “We are also going to add some more green space to soften those aesthetics, as well.
“The dwell time in outlet centers is typically much longer than traditional shopping. And one of the priorities for us is making sure that when that customer comes to OKC Outlets, they have got an environment that they enjoy so they are comfortable and will stay longer.”
Hinkle said consumers are migrating to open-air shopping experiences.
“And with the millennials now being the leading retail and outlet shoppers, they certainly love that outdoor environment,” he said. “We have got a great foundation out there to work with, and our job is to make it an environment that’s even more pleasing for the consumer.”
Hinkle said TORG and Singerman love the mix of retailers at OKC Outlets, and they believe there will be opportunities to add some stores.
Currently, OKC Outlets includes more than 90 retailers including Nike, Vera Bradley, Michael Kors, Polo Ralph Lauren and Under Armour in a 400,000-square-foot outdoor mall.