SanTan Village Surpasses Expectations
October 29 2007 - 5:36PM
PR Newswire (US)
Arizona's Newest Regional Shopping Center Truly has a Grand Opening
PHOENIX, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- SanTan Village, the
centerpiece of a flourishing retail corridor southeast of Metro
Phoenix, successfully grand opened Oct. 26, with many retailers
beating expectations and some setting all-time high sales records
during the first weekend. SanTan Village, an open-air, super
regional lifestyle center in Gilbert, Ariz., spans 1.2 million
square feet of gross leasable area. It sits at the core of a
well-planned, sustainable 500-acre project that, upon build out,
will encompass 3 million square feet of retail, restaurants,
entertainment, office space, residential and hotel uses. It is
strategically situated in one of the nation's most rapidly growing
areas. The project is the first ground-up super regional shopping
destination created by Santa Monica, Calif.-based Macerich(R)
(NYSE:MAC). The development was overseen by its Phoenix-based
Westcor division, which has a 40-year history solidly founded in
ground-up retail destinations, primarily in Arizona. "SanTan
Village's grand opening weekend went beyond our expectations in
terms of overwhelmingly positive shopper response and retailers'
successes," said Art Coppola, president and chief executive
officer, Macerich. "Foot traffic and sales steadily increased
throughout the weekend. The success of the opening is definitely a
positive sign of things to come for the center." This weekend, more
than 85 retailers and restaurants opened, including Dillard's,
Banana Republic, Coach, White House/Black Market, Aeropostale,
Pumpkin Patch, Victoria's Secret, lucy, Gordon Biersch Brewery
Restaurant, Paradise Bakery & Caf� and Ann Taylor. In total
this year, roughly 100 retailers and restaurants are poised to
open. The phased project will see more merchants open in 2008,
including as Dick's Sporting Goods, Brio Tuscan Grille, Barnes
& Noble and Sephora. "Shoppers migrated to the retail mix we
specifically and carefully created," said Kim Choukalas, Westcor,
vice president, development leasing. "SanTan Village's custom
merchandising mix resonated powerfully with the community.
Retailers are clustered in distinct neighborhoods that create
customer convenience, while also producing a powerful synergy
between the merchants themselves." Weekend sales reports from
SanTan Village show the strategic mix of retailers and clustering
of like merchants is paying off. Foot traffic throughout the center
was strong and steadily progressed throughout the weekend, while
sales followed the same pattern. Several merchants beat sales
expectations -- including The Buckle and The Children's Place. Just
Sports said customer traffic and sales were outstanding, and
receipts were 30 percent above projections. Dillard's Store Manager
Jerry Rios reported strong sales and crowds. "Shoppers
enthusiastically responded to this perfectly positioned new super
regional shopping center," said Brett Milkie, vice president of
leasing, The Buckle. "Sales were better than we anticipated and
beat our expectations." Paradise Bakery & Cafe's weekend was a
stellar success, and the company broke all previous records for a
grand opening weekend. Foot traffic at the SanTan Village location
was incredibly strong. This grand opening creates a new benchmark
high for Paradise Bakery. "We are very pleased with our store's
performance," said Larry Meyer, Forever 21, senior vice president
and chief financial officer. "SanTan Village is a prime location to
help us serve the growing customer base in the southeast Metro
Phoenix area." The Children's Place is another hand-picked national
retail concept. Sales were beyond expectations and breaking
records, while foot traffic was energetic and strong. "Our newest
lucy location at SanTan Village surpassed our sales projections
during the grand opening weekend," said Michelle Lantow, chief
financial officer, lucy. "The dynamic mix of merchants is
first-rate, and the center's urban streetscape is an excellent
match for lucy's exclusive, high-quality activewear. SanTan Village
has already proven that it's a superb project in the perfect
location." Clustering retailers in neighborhoods shows signs of
future successes. For example, Pumpkin Patch sits within the
bustling cluster of children's retailers at SanTan Village, which
features several play areas in the nearby area. "This strategic
location gives Pumpkin Patch excellent visibility for many families
visiting SanTan Village," said Joann Ryan, USA director of stores.
"Customer foot traffic was steady throughout grand opening weekend,
and sales beat our projections. This market is a great fit with the
family-focused demographic. Pumpkin Patch is a premium brand of
high quality that is an excellent match for the market." Founded in
1969, Phoenix-based Westcor is a wholly owned subsidiary of
Macerich. The largest owner-manager of commercial properties in
Arizona, Westcor's portfolio currently consists of 16 million
square feet of retail space at 28 shopping centers, including 11
super-regional centers, 3 specialty retail centers and 14 urban
villages. The company has set the industry benchmark for ground-up
shopping center development, such as Chandler Fashion Center,
Prescott Gateway Mall and Scottsdale Fashion Square. Additional
information about Westcor is available online at
http://www.westcor.com/. Macerich is a fully integrated
self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust,
which focuses on the acquisition, leasing, management, development
and redevelopment of regional malls throughout the United States.
The company is the sole general partner and owns an 84% ownership
interest in The Macerich Partnership, L.P. Macerich now owns
approximately 77 million square feet of gross leaseable area
consisting primarily of interests in 73 regional malls. Additional
information about Macerich can be obtained from the Company's Web
site at http://www.macerich.com/. DATASOURCE: Macerich CONTACT:
Christine Romero of Macerich public relations, +1-602-953-6593, or
mobile, +1-602-377-7540, Web site: http://www.macerich.com/
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