King of Prussia Mall Owner Expanding In Spite Of Industry Slump

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Just as The Wall Street Journal proclaimed the mall development business “virtually dead,” the owner of the King of Prussia Mall, the nation’s second-largest shopping center, has unveiled grand plans to expand its Philly area retail attraction and open a Philly outlet development in 2015, according to an official Simon Property Group announcement and news coverage by The Wall Street Journal.

“In today’s environment, there’s a whole lot of demand for people to get in their cars and go to an outlet center and find a lot of value in aspirational brands,” a Simon spokesman said in the WSJ article.

In King of Prussia, 155,000 square feet of new retail and restaurant space is planned to connect The Plaza and The Court with “floor-to-ceiling windows, an upscale dining pavilion, soft seating lounges and device-charging stations, a concierge-level guest service center” and a “new, state-of-the-art parking garage with speed ramps, space location technology and valet service,” the Simon release stated.

Set for a fall 2016 debut, the expansion will also feature an “exciting, new collection of luxury retailers, upscale dining options, and exclusive, first-to-market retailers not found elsewhere in the region” and culminate in a single, unified shopping destination with more than 450 store options across 2.86 million square feet.

“Based on the success of luxury retailers like Cartier, Tiffany & Co., Hermes and Louis Vuitton, we’re seeing a strong interest from other luxury brands to join the King of Prussia roster of retailers,” Simon Malls President David J. Contis said in the announcement. “Interest by national and Philadelphia-area restaurants is also high.”

Read more about the plans for the King of Prussia Mall from Simon here and its defiance of nationwide industry trends in The Wall Street Journal here.

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Top photo credit: Montgomery County Planning Commission via photopin cc

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