Local retailers say they have yet to feel the effect of new Norwalk mall
It was the desired look Pinstripes sought for its new South Norwalk bowling bistro, with large windows allowing shoppers at The SoNo Collection mall to sneak peeks at the action inside, with folks doing just that during a bustling grand opening Thursday evening.
As for the action in the rest of the mall in the early hours of that evening? It was not such a good look, with shoppers otherwise sparse along the rest of the concourses just 12 days before Christmas, giving credence to the contention of independent retailers in surrounding towns that The SoNo Collection is rolling a gutter ball in knocking down their sales in any meaningful way this holiday season.
With Pinstripes representing the first of more than a dozen restaurants that are a key underpinning of the mall’s design — the idea that diners will shop as well at The SoNo Collection’s stores — it remains to be seen whether other upscale retailers in adjacent towns have a oneyear reprieve from major competition, with the bulk of the mall’s restaurants to open in the first half of 2020. That lineup includes the Yard House sports bar chain, Jacob’s Pickles out of New York City, Sally’s Apizza from New Haven and Made In China from a celebrated New Canaan restaurateur.
The SoNo Collection opened in midOctober alongside Nordstrom, with Bloomingdale’s following a month later amid a slow but steady stream of additions. Still to come is the first Amazon store in Connecticut.
For the purposes of the 2019 shopping season, it seems apparent that Amazon.com remains far more a threat to upscale retailers in Darien, New Canaan, Westport and Wilton, all of which have thriving downtown retail districts within a 15minute drive of The SoNo Collection.
“I have talked to a couple of stores and they feel ... that the new mall is just another challenge to their business,” said Debra Hanson, executive director of the Wilton Chamber of Commerce. “The opinion is that online is the biggest offender, but ... if a store in the mall carries the same brand as one of our retailers that is direct competition
and definitely a negative.”
A unique and quaint experience
Like other chambers in Connecticut and elsewhere, the Wilton chamber has been organizing “Shop Local” campaigns to reinvigorate foot traffic for street retailers and restaurants, including a “Holiday Stroll” the first Friday of December and a winter carnival slated for late January.
Hanson’s counterpart in New Canaan estimates that a few thousand people attended her town’s own holiday stroll festivities last weekend.
“Shoppers are really understanding the ‘Shop Local’ messaging and are doing their part,” said Tucker Murphy, executive director of the New Canaan Chamber of Commerce. “Our retailers told us
their numbers were up for that event.”
The SoNo Collection is unique among Connecticut malls, designed as a regional magnet located just off Interstate 95 but inviting South Norwalk denizens and workers to walk over with easy street access.
The latter idea has driven much of lower Fairfield County’s retail development the past few years, most notably in the cases of Stamford’s Harbor Point district which clusters apartments above or adjacent to retail and restaurant space; and the new Bedford Square in downtown Westport, which transformed a former YMCA property into a distinct shopping district. In Darien, Baywater Properties is developing The Corbin District with a mix of retail, dining, offices and apartments.
Bedford Square has drawn both big brands like Anthropologie & Co. and Williams
Sonoma as well as boutiques new to Connecticut like Savannah Bee and Welden, a handbag startup from former Kate Spade designer Sandy Friesen of Norwalk.
Developer David Waldman said that The SoNo Collection has yet to impact Bedford Square in any discernible way, with the shopping center landing a Lillian August furniture showroom even as the Norwalkbased company prepares to open another location at The SoNo Collection not far from its flagship store.
“The mall to us in Westport is a nonissue,” said Matthew Mandell, executive director of the WestportWeston Chamber of Commerce. “People who want to have a unique and quaint New England experience shopping and dining are continuing to come to our town and Main Street to enjoy themselves. Overall foot traffic is fine with a few big weekends still ahead of us.”
Still, Bedford Square’s arrival has coincided with turnover on Main Street, where several storefronts await new tenants. And if the SoNo Collection offers competition to most major categories of local retailers, mall anchors Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom arrive with builtin customer bases that could challenge independent department stores like Mitchells of Westport or apparel stores like Darien Sport Shop.
Gina Zangrillo, president of Darien Sport Shop, said she has seen no change in business since Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s and the rest of The SoNo Collection opened.
“Other than a shortened holiday season with Thanksgiving falling one week later, we expect our business will meet or exceed our sales plan,” Zangrillo said.