NEW BUSINESSES
Six businesses have opened and four more have signed leases since Towne Mall was purchased last year by a California-based investment group, according to Trisha Hale, mall manager.
Now open:
All About You Catering and Bakery
Splattered Platter
Miss Selby’s Soaps and Such
A.L.M. Team Sports
Wigs for a Change
My Gadget Solutions
Coming soon:
Yanni’s Greek Gyros
Ice Ice Smoothies
Home Connection
Gameland
Now closed
Dunham Sports
Staying with the story
The Middletown Journal has reported the major developments at Towne Mall since it was purchased last year by a California-based investment group. You can count on the Journal to continue to report new developments and how they impact the local business community.
In the six months since the Towne Mall was purchased, the occupancy rate has climbed from about 40 percent to 59 percent, according to one of the investors.
The mall has added six businesses, and four more have signed leases, while one, Dunham Sports, decided not to renew its lease, said Trisha Hale, mall manager.
While the economic news coming from the Towne Mall is positive, it needs to find several tenants to occupy its largest available space, the 111,696-square-foot former Dillard’s location, said George Ragheb, one of the investors for SA Mary LLC, a California based group.
He said the 465,451-square-foot mall hopes to sign three to five national tenants to fill the former Dillard’s site. Ever since Dillard’s closed, the mall has had two anchor stores — the 63,106-square-foot Sears and 117,888-square-foot Elder-Beerman.
Ragheb said mall management is “75 percent down the road” toward signing what he called the “right tenants, major tenants.” He said they’re considering nine potential tenants. Ragheb refused to name any of them until the contracts are signed.
He said the interest from retailers shows “people believe our story.”
Plans call for the owners to give the 36-year-old mall a face lift that will cost between $20 million to $25 million, he said.
Eventually, he said, the mall will become “a true shopping destination” for Middletown residents and those from neighboring communities.
That probably won’t happen, though, until the major tenants open. The new businesses mainly are specialty shops or restaurants, and while they have “strong followings,” Hale understands the financial weight anchors carry.
“You have to have a great mix of tenants,” Hale said. “That’s what you need for a winning mall. It has to become a destination, a place to go.”
Hale said she hasn’t seen this much excitement in the mall in years. She said the “whole mood” has changed in the East End.
Gail West has been in the clothing business for more than 3o years and she works at Worthmore in the mall. She said the mall is taking “baby steps,” but she sees additional foot track, a sign business is improving.
“It seems to be drawing people back,” she said.
One of the new businesses that is enjoying early success is Miss Selby’s Soap and Such, a store that offers all locally-produced products — from Renee Selby’s candles and soaps to jelly and jams from Lebanon to LaCrema Coffee from West Chester Twp. to Fenno Fashions from Cincinnati to Waggoner Chocolates from Canton.
Carolyn Centers, who works at the store, described business as “better than we thought.” She said in just the few weeks it’s been open, she’s is seeing more and more repeat customers. She said people like purchasing all natural, local products.
Centers also sees a bright future for the mall, and that certainly wasn’t always the case. When the Middletown native, who lives in Cincinnati, visited the Towne Mall months ago before it was sold, she said the vacant stores “broke my heart.”
Now, she said, “I see progress and that makes me excited.”
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