Redevelopment and reinvention appears to be paying off for Orange County’s largest shopping centers.
The 37 malls and other retail centers on this week’s Business Journal list posted $8.6 billion in sales in the year ended June 30.
That represents a 3.4% year-over-year increase for those on the list, a strong showing in a national retail sector still struggling to adapt to new shopping trends and competition from Amazon and other online retailers.
Last year, ranked centers’ taxable sales were flat, marking the end of a seven-year growth streak following the Great Recession.
Most have either recently completed redevelopment projects, including Irvine Spectrum Center, or taking steps to revamp their properties, such as MainPlace Mall in Santa Ana.
Ranked properties either self-reported sales data, or the figures were obtained from their respective cities or through Business Journal research.
More than half of the centers, 23, reported increases; nine had sales declines; two were flat; and three are Business Journal estimates and couldn’t provide comparative numbers.
The list includes two additions: Pacific City in Huntington Beach, 27th, and Lido Marina Village in Newport Beach, 35th.
At Your Service
• South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa stayed at the top with $1.8 billion in taxable sales, up 3.2% year-over-year. The 2.8 million-square-foot center operated by C.J. Segerstrom & Sons has 280 stores, a wide range of luxury retailers and fine dining.
Last month, one of its largest and oldest tenants, Sears, started winding down operations after parent company Sears Holdings Corp. announced it will close several locations across the country as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.
C.J. Segerstrom & Sons bought the site last year for a reported $187 million. Sears had leased back the roughly 240,000-square-foot space as a tenant.
A 43,000-square-foot former portion of Sears is occupied under undisclosed terms by Los Angeles-based fast-fashion retailer Forever 21; it’s not expected to close.
South Coast Plaza executives have been tight-lipped about plans for the Sears site, one of the most enviable developable retail spots in Southern California.
The Business Journal reported last week on the struggling department store’s efforts to end operations at the Bristol Avenue location around year-end.
Despite the store’s closure, the shopping center has charged ahead with exclusive openings and attracting top brands to its halls.
This past summer, a nearly 14,000-square-foot Louis Vuitton was unveiled, the largest single-story Louis Vuitton store in its America’s region. The boutique also boasts the first on-site atelier at South Coast Plaza, as well as its first full-time hand-painter to personalize leather goods. Other recent openings include the West Coast flagship of women’s label Lafayette 148 New York; the first brick-and-mortar shop of L.A.-based Korean beauty site Beautytap; and British contemporary brand AllSaints, along with planned eateries, such as Knife Pleat and The Hall Global Eatery.
• No. 2, Fashion Island, had taxable sales growth of 7.4% to $767.5 million, a nice boost over last year, when the city reported $715 million in its 50th anniversary year.
• The Market Place in Tustin and Irvine, part of Irvine Co.’s retail portfolio, remained third with an estimated $600 million in sales, up 2.4%.
• Simon Property Group Inc.’s Brea Mall followed at fourth with a 3% sales increase to $508.9 million. The 1.3-million-square-foot shopping center announced in April that its now vacant Sears store will be refashioned into a three-story, 120,000-square foot Life Time Athletics fitness center. It also plans to include a residential element, entertainment, restaurants and retail as part of redevelopment in the area around the former store. Simon didn’t disclose a timeline, and plans haven’t been filed with the city.
• Taxable sales at Irvine Spectrum Center, fifth, were flat at $396.4 million. The Irvine Co. property wrapped up a $200 million renovation in August. New tenants at the outdoor mall include Sephora, 85°C Bakery Cafe, Stance, Afters Ice Cream, Ra Yoga and Drybar.
• MainPlace Mall in Santa Ana dropped four spots to 13th, its sales falling 11% to $207 million. More than 9 million shoppers a year visit the mall’s roughly 160 stores, 14 restaurants, two department stores, gym and other entertainment options, according to owners Centennial Real Estate in Dallas, which paid $1.1 billion for the site and four other U.S. malls in 2016. Centennial is planning a massive revamp of the 50-acre property near the Santa Ana (5) and Garden Grove (22) freeways interchange. The new master plan, as originally reported by the Business Journal, includes 1,900 residential units, 400 hotel rooms, 1.4 million square feet of retail space, and up to 750,000 square feet of office space.
• Newcomer Lido Marina Village in Newport Beach reported $49.5 million in taxable sales, up 35.8%. The tourist destination has morphed into a hip hotspot with upscale boutiques, such as Elyse Walker, and trendy dining options, including Orange County’s first Nobu—Chef Nobu Matsuhisa has said in news reports that Lido is the perfect place for his famous restaurant.
