King of Prussia Mall
 The ceiling and a platform at the mall during the holidays. Notice the Christmas wreath on the top. | |
| Location |
160 North Gulph Road King of Prussia, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°5′18″N 75°23′25″W / 40.08833°N 75.39028°WCoordinates: 40°5′18″N 75°23′25″W / 40.08833°N 75.39028°W |
| Opening date | 1963 |
| Developer | The Kravco Co. |
| Management | Simon Property Group |
| Owner | King of Prussia Associates, Simon Property Group (97%) |
| No. of stores and services | 400+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 8 |
| Total retail floor area | 2,900,000 square feet (270,000 m2)[1] |
| No. of floors | 3 (3 in Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Pavilion; 3rd floor storage space in JCPenney) |
| Parking | 5 Parking lots, 3 parking garage |
| Public transit access | SEPTA bus: 92, 99, 123, 124, 125, 139 at the King of Prussia Transit Center |
| Website | www.kingofprussiamall.com |
The King of Prussia Mall is the second largest shopping mall in the United States in terms of leaseable space and number of retailers.[2] It is a luxury mall with numerous upscale retailers, anchored by Lord & Taylor, Dick's Sporting Goods, Primark, JCPenney, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Macy's and Bloomingdale's.
The mall is located in King of Prussia, a census-designated place within Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County in southeastern Pennsylvania, just outside Philadelphia. The mall, which opened in 1963, consisted of two distinct buildings known as the Plaza and the Court until August 2016, when a major expansion was completed and the two buildings were finally connected to create one massive shopping mall.[3]
Description
King of Prussia Mall is anchored by Nordstrom, Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Lord & Taylor, JCPenney, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Primark and a diverse merchant mix of over 400 stores, including a collection of luxury retailers.
A selection of international dining options are available at three food courts and in casual and fine dining establishments including Joe's Crab Shack, Cheesecake Factory, Morton's The Steakhouse, Seasons 52, Capital Grille, Maggiano's Little Italy, California Pizza Kitchen, Cantina Laredo, Grand Lux Cafe, Rock Bottom Brewery, Bonefish Grill, and Legal Sea Foods.
History
The mall was originally developed by the Kravco company. The Plaza at King of Prussia, the oldest portion of the complex, opened in 1963 as a modest open-air shopping mall anchored by JCPenney, discount department store E. J. Korvette, and an Acme "A-Frame" style supermarket. The Plaza prospered and by the late 1970s had become a partially enclosed super-regional mall anchored by department stores JCPenney, Gimbels, and Wanamaker's. The Wanamaker's store opened in 1965 in what had been an amphitheater.
By the late 1970s, The Plaza consisted of a small, fully enclosed section (connecting the three department stores) and a sprawling outdoor mall (featuring Woolworth's and Acme Markets). It was around this time Kravco noticed a demand for more upscale shopping in the northwest Philadelphia market. The company embarked on a second mall, The Court at King of Prussia, to be constructed across the street from The Plaza. The Court opened in 1981 as a fully enclosed mall anchored by department stores Bamberger's (later in 1986 to become Macy's), Bloomingdale's, and Abraham & Straus (A&S). In addition, Sears was added to The Plaza, relocating from Norristown. Sears was built as a "store of the future" and was completed along with an expansion of the multi-level portion of the Plaza.[4] The Garden Food Court was part of this expansion. Shoppers also said goodbye to inclement weather as the outdoor portion of The Plaza was enclosed. For the first time, King of Prussia visitors were inside all the time.
Through the 1980s, The Plaza sported such stores as Woolworth's, Herman's World of Sporting Goods, and a Lionel "Kiddie City" toy store. The Woolworth's store closed in 1993. The Plaza also featured two 1980s style video arcades, each named Spaceport, and the RKO Stanley Warner (later Sam Eric, and then United Artists Plaza) movie theater which, in an era before multiplexes, had only one extra large 7m screen. This theatre was later split in half to add a second screen.
By the early 1990s, demand for luxury goods had grown across the nation and many upscale retailers were in a growth mode. Lord & Taylor, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom were all looking for new locations in the area, and Kravco didn't want any of them to land at a competing mall. The company's dilemma, though, was that The Court was on a small piece of land and couldn't expand, while The Plaza was too downscale for these stores. Kravco decided to embark on an ambitious campaign to almost completely rebuild The Plaza to make it just as attractive to upscale retailers as The Court and to begin marketing the two malls as a single entity (a pedestrian bridge and walkway connecting the malls was constructed around this time, though there have always been informal passageways from one to the other). The former Acme Markets location was demolished during this project; beforehand it moved a bit down the road into a new building, with a strip mall including a Tower Records shop (since closed).
The new Plaza is fully enclosed and has two levels throughout. Lord & Taylor opened its doors in the fall of 1995, while Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom opened theirs in the spring of 1996. Upscale stores at The Plaza are clustered in the southern end of the mall near Lord & Taylor, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom, while middle-market stores remain clustered in the northern end of the mall near JCPenney and Sears. The Court now contains a mix of upscale stores and middle-market stores.
The anchor lineup at both malls changed during the 1990s as the industry consolidated. Stern's, which had replaced Gimbels, left and JCPenney moved into its old space. John Wanamaker was acquired by May Department Stores, which rebranded all Wanamaker's as Hecht's, their Baltimore-Washington regional nameplate. Abraham & Straus was consolidated with Macy's and Strawbridge & Clothier briefly took its place at The Court. Soon after, May acquired Strawbridge & Clothier, rebranded it as simply Strawbridge's, and merged it with Hecht's Philadelphia operations. The Hecht's (former John Wanamaker) at The Plaza became a Strawbridge's and the Strawbridge's (former Abraham & Straus) at The Court closed. The mall even featured an outlet of the popular New York City toy company FAO Schwarz, complete with a giant teddy bear, before hard financial times forced it to close in 2004.
The growth of large-format specialty retailers in the 1990s led to the early 2000s conversion of the former Strawbridge's store at The Court into The Pavilion at King of Prussia, which might be considered the "third mall" at King of Prussia. The Pavilion connects directly to The Court (though not originally owned by Kravco, it was later acquired and is considered by many as an expansion of the Court). Tenants at The Pavilion include The Cheesecake Factory, Old Navy, Urban Outfitters, DSW Shoes, and Morton's The Steakhouse and many more. Before development of The Pavilion, a 20-screen multiplex was proposed for the buildings third floor. This would have been the first movie theatre built inside The King of Prussia Mall.
In 2006, the Strawbridge's store was reflagged as a second Macy's location. It was closed in 2007 and demolished in 2011 to make room for a new two-story retail building.
The mall served as the home of the Philadelphia Freedoms tennis team of World TeamTennis in 2008 and 2009. Whenever a tennis event was to occur, a temporary tennis stadium was constructed in the parking lot of the Bloomingdale's anchor store. Eventually, the Freedoms left for The Pavilion at Villanova University in 2010.
In 2011, Simon increased its ownership of the King of Prussia Mall from 12.4 percent to 96 percent, buying Lend Lease's 50 percent ownership of the mall. Lend Lease had bought its stake in the mall in 1996, with Kravco, Simon, and three family trusts owning the remaining 50 percent at the time.[5]
In January 2014, it was announced that Sears would sublease some of its space to Dick's Sporting Goods.[6] Sears would be closing this location in early December 2014. It was announced that Irish retailer Primark would be on the first level of its space while Dick's Sporting Goods would take parts of the second level.[7] The Primark store opened on November 25, 2015.[8]
2011–2016 expansion
The sixth anchor store in the Plaza (the former Wanamaker's/Strawbridge's/Macy's building), was demolished during the fall of 2011. Over 100,000 sq ft. of retail space adjacent to the former department store is currently under redevelopment,[9] and some of the stores within the redevelopment have already opened, including a relocated, 2-level Forever 21 and an Athleta. H&M has relocated to a 2-level store as well, and they opened right next to the new Forever 21. A second H&M opened November 21, 2012. Texas de Brazil announced they are opening at the mall in 2015.[10]
On November 29, 2011, Simon Property Group announced plans to create a 140,000 sq ft. expansion to connect The Court and The Plaza.[11] This new retail connector will feature 50 stores, dining choices from some of Philadelphia's well-known celebrity chefs, an upscale dining pavilion, and a customer lounge. This proposal, which includes expanding the adjacent parking deck, is still subject to approval by the local government. This project will make King of Prussia Mall the largest official shopping mall in the United States (larger than Mall of America in overall square footage), and it will be under one roof for the first time. The 155,000-square-foot expansion will also add a new parking garage “with speed ramps, space location technology and valet service.”[12] Construction on this expansion is estimated to cost $150 million.[13] Several outparcels are also proposed for this expansion. The Container Store is located in the outer parking lot of The Court with frontage along Dekalb Pike (US 202). Chipotle opened its own restaurant off the turnpike next to The Container Store. Most recently a Shake Shack opened in the outskirts of the parking lot closest JC Penney.[14] On November 18, 2014, construction began on the expansion to connect The Court and The Plaza.[15] The expansion opened August 18, 2016, with two ribbons joined from The Court and The Plaza.[16]
King of Prussia today
Managed by Simon Property Group of Indianapolis, who owns 97%, the upscale mall has over 400 stores and restaurants. It is also the sole outpost in Philadelphia for a number of high-end stores including Stuart Weitzman, Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren, Love Culture, Kate Spade, Tory Burch, DKNY, Louis Vuitton, Longchamp, Gucci, Henri Bendel, Cartier, Tourneau, Ermenegildo Zegna, Vineyard Vines, and Hermès. King of Prussia frequently sees the addition of new retailers, many of which are unique to the area, with some having one of their few East Coast locations at King of Prussia. The Mall also houses a Tesla Motors dealership.
The mall is a prominent tourist destination in the Philadelphia area, with an estimated 20–25% of visitors as tourists. Several nearby hotels offer mall tourist packages, which typically include mall gift cards. The mall employs over 7,000 people in the area.
Due to the mall's size, several retailers rent more than one space. For example, the mall has three Sunglass Hut Internationals, five Auntie Anne's Pretzels, two Coach stores, two Victoria's Secrets, two H&Ms, two Starbucks restaurants, two GameStop stores (with one GameStop almost directly above another), two General Nutrition Center stores, two Bath & Body Works, two AT&T Stores, and two Teavana stores.
A covered outdoor walkway, which features an array of plants, benches, and speakers playing jazz music, connects Macy's & Neiman Marcus. The Eastern portion of the mall (originally known as the Court) has two anchor stores, Macy's and Bloomingdale's. It originally had a third anchor, Abraham & Straus, which sold its store in 1988 to Strawbridge and Clothier, which subsequently relocated to the former Wanamaker location at The Plaza in 1996 upon its acquisition by May Department Stores Co. Its spot was redeveloped as the shopping complex's newest section, the Pavilion at King of Prussia. Stores in this section include a double-level Urban Outfitters, Old Navy, and The Cheesecake Factory. One of the complex's four food courts is also located on the lower level just past Bloomingdales
The mall has several out-parcels including Crate & Barrel, Seasons 52, and a Wells Fargo branch. There are also several large stores located in the immediate vicinity of the mall, including a 16 screen United Artists Theaters with an IMAX theater,[17] a Wegman's Food Market, a Costco Wholesale, Toys "R" Us/Babies "R" Us Superstore, Best Buy, Nordstrom Rack, Walmart, the largest Target on the east coast, Capital Grille, and several luxury and affordable hotels. Lockheed Martin also has a massive campus overlooking the mall area. Also under construction is the King of Prussia Town Center, a 230,000+ square foot retail development adjacent to a new 130,000 square foot Wegmans in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. The retail project is located within a 125-acre mixed-use development (including up to 3,000 residential units, 500 hotel rooms, a hospital and multiple office buildings) that is currently being developed in phases adjacent to the King of Prussia Mall.
Anchors
| Store | Size | Opened | Section | Previous stores | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomingdale's | 229,484 sq ft (21,319.8 m2) | 1981 | The Court | N/A | |
| Dick's Sporting Goods | 2014 | The Plaza | Sears (1983–2014) | ||
| JCPenney | 171,558 sq ft (15,938.3 m2) | 1992 | The Plaza | Gimbels (1966–87) Stern's (1988–89) |
|
| Lord & Taylor | 120,000 sq ft (11,000 m2) | 1995 | The Plaza | N/A | |
| Macy's | 252,243 sq ft (23,434.1 m2) | 1986 | The Court | Bamberger's (1981–85) | |
| Neiman Marcus | 138,775 sq ft (12,892.6 m2) | 1996 | The Plaza | N/A | |
| Nordstrom | 225,000 sq ft (20,900 m2) | 1996 | The Plaza | N/A | |
| Primark | 2015 | The Plaza | Sears (1983–2014) | ||
| – | 67,753 sq ft (6,294.5 m2) | – | The Plaza | John Wanamaker (1965–95) Hecht's (1995–97) Strawbridge's (1997-2006) Macy's plaza (2006–07) |
See also
References
- ↑ "King of Prussia Mall Fact Sheet" (PDF). Simon Property Group. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
- ↑ "King of Prussia Mall – King of Prussia, PA – America's largest shopping mall". city-data.com. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
- ↑ "After 53 years, King of Prussia is finally one mall". Retrieved 4 October 2016.
- ↑ Puleo, Gary (January 21, 2014). "King of Prussia Sears to sublet second level to Dick's Sporting Goods". King of Prussia Courier. Retrieved January 23, 2014.
- ↑ Kostelni, Natalie (September 16, 2011). "Simon Property takes control at King of Prussia Mall". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved November 29, 2011.
- ↑ Panaritis, Maria (January 17, 2014). "Sears to sublease some King of Prussia space to Dick's Sporting Goods". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
- ↑ DiStefano, Joseph M. (November 18, 2014). "PhillyDeals: Expansion planned at King of Prussia Plaza and Court". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
- ↑ Kostelini, Natalie (November 25, 2015). "Ahead of Black Friday, Primark opens store at King of Prussia Mall". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
- ↑ Kostelni, Natalie (October 11, 2010). "Wanamaker's building at mall to be razed for new retail, parking".
- ↑ Texas de Brazil King of Prussia http://www.texasdebrazil.com/locations/pennsylvania/king-of-prussia-pa/. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ Van Allen, Peter (August 14, 2012), "What's new at the King of Prussia Mall?", Philadelphia Business Journal, bizjournals.com, retrieved September 9, 2012
- ↑ Shoemaker Debree, Crissa (November 29, 2011). "King of Prussia announces new expansion". The Intelligencer. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ↑ Kostelni, Natalie (March 12, 2014). "King of Prussia Mall expansion starting soon". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
- ↑ http://www.simon.com/mall/king-of-prussia-mall/stream/coming-soon--chipotle-1021611
- ↑ Udo, Justin (November 18, 2014). "Major Expansion Project Begins At King Of Prussia Mall". KYW-TV. Philadelphia. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
- ↑ Parmley, Suzette (August 20, 2016). "It's official: King of Prussia becomes one vast mall with 50 new retailers and restaurants". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
- ↑ UA King Of Prussia Stadium 16 & IMAX Showtimes and Tickets
External links
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