New options for shoppers revives mall
Added grocery store, gym challenges stereotype
Malls are back. Or at least some are coming back ...
As more and more people have turned to the internet to do their shopping, malls across America took a big hit. But some mall owners and managers think they’ve found the secret to renewed success: greater diversity in what’s offered.
For an example of the trend, check out the Yuba Sutter Mall, where two of its newest tenants are somewhat unique to a mall atmosphere – a grocery store (Smart & Final) and a gym, (Planet Fitness).
“Some malls are doing quite well in this day and age, while other malls are dying and need to be used for something else. In the case of the Yuba Sutter Mall and the Chico Mall, if you look at sales per square foot of stores, they are good, healthy stores, for the most part,” said owner Ethan Conrad. “Those that aren’t doing as well – it really just depends on how that business is doing nationally. Some brands are just
Yuba-sutter experienced the biggest storm so far this winter, according to a weather official. The National Weather Service in Sacramento reported that the series of storms starting earlier this week brought more rain and wind than previous storms this season. The next few days will be calmer.
“With strong winds and significant precipitation, the system we just had was a borderline strong atmospheric river storm,” said Cory Mueller, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sacramento. “The last one we had was one of the strongest we’ve had this winter.”
He said cloudy skies with a high of 55 degrees and a low of 46 degrees is forecast for today.
“It’ll be much quieter weather with some light showers possible on Friday and Saturday,” Mueller said. “We’re not expecting much more rain accumulation.”
He said there’s rain in the forecast for
dying out, while others are doing better.”
In its opening weekend alone, Smart & Final did more sales than any other company store on the West Coast in the last five years, Conrad said. Planet Fitness is constantly buzzing with people going in and out, too.
“Overall, I’d say that things are going well. Our tenants’ sales are doing good,” Conrad said.
The mall’s occupancy is more than 90 percent currently, with 47 retailers. As space opens up at the mall, there are interested parties in line hoping to move in.
Sears is one of the local mall’s anchor tenants, but with the company filing for bankruptcy, the store’s future has been in question.
“We have strong interest from a variety of logical, good national tenants. At this point, time will tell whether we are able to terminate that Sears lease or not. That’s a profitable store, so the likelihood is that they will keep it open,” Conrad said.
Ethan Conrad Properties, a commercial real estate investment company, has owned the Yuba Sutter Mall for about two years. They also recently purchased the Chico Mall for about $35 million.
“When you look at a mall or shopping center, if you know a store’s sales, that tells you everything you need to know about how that store is doing. With the Chico Mall and Yuba Sutter Mall, both of those are quite healthy,” he said.
Darin Gale, economic development manager for Yuba City, said the local mall is a great example of how to adapt to the new shopping environment.
“Malls are changing. Even the Galleria in Roseville is changing. We were on the front edge of that, in terms of the property owners trying to attract different users, and those two new businesses are doing well,” he said.
The old malls, where there were three or four large users – or anchor tenants, has changed, and not all stores are retail, Gale said. Whether it’s a specific service, entertainment destination, office space or large-space use, owners are getting creative in finding new ways to drive foot traffic.
“One of the things we are trying to help pursue is: we still need more things for families and young folks to do. We’d love to see some sort of draw or destination for our youth and families. We already have some options in the city, but we could definitely use another to support those,” Gale said.
Conrad said he’s in discussions with a variety of potential national tenants interested in opening in the mall. He said community members can also expect to see a remodel and rebranding in 2019.