August 2004 Cover Story Features

Cover Story

More than a Whitewash
Renovations are bringing ‘life’ to outlet centers, 92 percent of which opened their first phases more than seven years ago – that’s 212 of 230 outlet centers coming on line before 1998, according to VRN research. With an eye fixed firmly on the nation’s popular lifestyle centers, outlet project developers are sprucing up their projects to ensure their offering remains up-to-date.

Redo in Cincinnati
Developer Mills Corp. learned some new tricks, and saved lots of money, when it strayed off its usual from-the-ground-up habit to convert a former regional mall into Cincinnati Mills, which opens on Aug. 11.

Features

Surprising Turn
In an unexpected but understandable move, the board of Chelsea Property Group, the nation’s largest outlet-center developer, agrees to be acquired by the nation’s largest mall developer, Simon Property Group. The deal is slated to be finalized by late October.

Changing Hands
Tanger Factory Outlet Centers sells two small centers in North Conway, N.H.; turnaround specialist Sugar Oak Properties buys an outlet center in central Illinois; and a downtown outlet center in Chattanooga, Tenn., comes under new ownership and is repositioned.

New Outlet Entry
Chico’s, an old outlet hand that operates two-dozen stores to dispose of its excess inventory, tests a similar format as it opens its first White House/ Black Market outlet this summer at Miromar Outlets in Estero, Fla. A second unit is planned by yearend, when Chico’s will pause to evaluate the new chain’s growth potential.

Mixed Results
ICSC reported that for the 3,500 outlet stores participating in its database, April same-store sales gained 1.0 percent on a year-over-year basis. But May comparable-store sales fell 3.2 percent below their level of the same month in 2003, breaking a string of three monthly gains.