Brad Schlossman has been the CEO of West Acres Development for 28 years. He is a Fargo native; grew up in Fargo, attended South High, and then went on to graduate from Southern Methodist University.
Brad came to give us an update on what's going on with West Acres, specifically the District. Brad stated that at this point in time, it feels like West Acres is in the 'sweet spot.' They have a great crew, 2% vacancy rate, the layout still works, and they have (continued) great access and parking. The success they have feels more rewarding than ever, and the demand for mall space far exceeds the availability. By most measurements, they are doing quite well.
A tidbit he shared was that the mall experiences more traffic during Bison Football games than attendees that are actually at the game!
Other items of interest:
- Lulu Lemon did a pop up store, and within two weeks of opening that, they made the decision that they wanted a permanent spot
- The stores have local ownership
- They have held an attitude of 'why not?!' which has opened the door for many things
- They have a studio space coming in that will be located by Best Buy, called Aptitude. It will house 19 artists
- Best Buy only took 2/3 of the Sears space, so there is some available space
- The former Best Buy building will soon be occupied 25% by the Foss Swim School. They will also have another tenant coming in that will occupy 10,000 square feet of that building (no name of occupant given)
- When a new stores comes in, the store's Internet traffic goes up by 37%. Just the same when a store closes, their Internet traffic falls 37%
- They had four of their stores expand in the last 12 months, with Halberstadt's being the biggest expansion
- Herbergers and Macy's own the spaces/buildings they occupy/occupied; they are not part of the mall
- No updates on the Herbergers location; doesn't know what is happening with it right now
Brad feels that the Fargo-Moorhead and surrounding areas have made West Acres successful. With the steady growth we have seen in the community, it really helps.