Page 73 - BusinessWest February 19, 2024

“Those types
of facilities are bringing a more eclectic mix of shoppers — all ages, all groups.”
ebb and flow within the world of retail. Overall, 25 new brands have called
the mall home since the pandemic arrived in 2020, she said, adding that COVID certainly contributed to the changing of the landscape.
“While we were shut down during the pandemic, we were still concur- rently trying to roll with the changes that were about to come over the next couple of years,” she explained. “Some brands went away, and some remained relevant.”
Elaborating, Gray noted that 24,000 square feet of mall space got converted into new openings over the past year alone, with 12 new businesses setting up shop.
“It was a good mix of retail, which
is still our bread and butter,” she said,
listing new arrivals such as Garage
(which touts itself as a “casual clothing
brand for young women who are fun
and effortlessly sexy); Snipes, a global
streetwear retailer now boasting more than 450 locations; a few new jewelers, including Mandati, King’s, and the Inspiration Co.; a Verizon store; and others.
Meanwhile, as noted, the new arrivals extend to the restaurant side of the ledger and even the food court, with the addition of El Burrito, a growing local venture that took over space formerly occu- pied by Wendy’s; and Terra Nossa Brazilian Grill, which replaced a former McDonald’s.
In most respects, 2023 was a better-than-average year for sign- ing new leases with smaller, sometimes local retailers, an annual assignment for malls, while also backfilling some of the much larg- er spaces left by the departure of major retailers, in this case rang- ing from Sears to Toys R Us to A.C. Moore.
El Burrito, a growing local venture that took over space formerly occupied by Wendy’s, is one of several new restaurant options at the mall.
Often, such backfilling takes years, Gray said, noting, for exam- ple, that the Sears at the Holyoke Mall has been closed for nearly a decade, and its space has not yet been fully repurposed. Sports Zone, a specialty operator featuring sports memorabilia, is occupy- ing the first level of that large footprint, and in years past, Spirit Halloween has taken some of that space on a seasonal basis, but the second level remains
vacant.
But many spaces have
Mall
Continued on page 33
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