Columbus, Ohio Mall Brings in Big Names

In the past seven years residents of Columbus, Ohio have seen dramatic changes to the way they shop.

City Center Mall, the downtown attraction that once housed the landmark Lazarus building and other such anchor stores as Marshall Fields and Jacobson's is now only at 30% capacity and will surely close entirely within the next few years.

The city has also seen the closing of Northland mall and the near demise of both Westland and Eastland malls. These smaller suburban malls are feeling the effects of the changing face of retail in Columbus.

With the opening of two new malls in the suburbs of the city, Polaris Fashion Place and Easton Town Center, Columbus shoppers have become savvy to brands and shops that have previously been reserved for those shoppers in larger cities such as Chicago and New York.

Of the two new malls to open probably the most interesting concept is Easton Town Center. The mall, envisioned by Limited Brands founder Leslie Wexner, is located only minutes from both the airport and downtown.

The mall itself is meant to give shoppers a "town-within-a-town" feeling, complete with horse drawn carriages and trolley cars to help visitors get from one end of the mall to the other.

Amy Huntley, a spokesperson for Steiner & Associates of Columbus, a New York City based firm that led the development of the center, said that she believed the 1.5 million square foot center could be considered the Rodeo Drive of the Midwest.

Easton is the home to 55 stores that cannot be found anywhere else in central Ohio. This fact has not gone unnoticed to the shoppers who oftentimes make a weekend trip out of visiting Easton for a unique shopping experience.

"On any given weekend I'll meet so many different people who come to Easton to shop, and eat dinner, and then stay at the Hilton. They make an adventure out of it", said John Pennecke, store manager of the upscale handbag store, Coach.

Many large retailers have decided to make Easton the site of their flagship stores. Limited Brands has opened up flagship stores with Victoria's Secret, C.O. Bigelow, and Bath and Body Works.

Easton has also attracted local central Ohio businesses that wish to expand their clientele and grow their companies. Local trendy denim boutique, Dr Mojoe recently opened its flagship store in October of this year at Easton. "This is our third store and we're really excited to see it do well. We've been in the Short North for four years and in Cincinnati for one year, being at Easton is a huge step for us", said Kelly Zoller, store manager at Dr Mojoe.

Easton Town Center has had a huge impact on central Ohio tourism and it's not even finished growing.

Phase three is rumored to be opening sometime in late 2007 and may house an upscale supermarket such as Wild Oats or Whole Foods. It is also rumored that there

may even be a Tiffany and Co as the anchor store of phase three. Robert Clark, a spokesperson Steiner & Associates could neither confirm nor deny the rumors about phase three. When asked what he though Easton Town Center was to Columbus, Clark said, "To us, it is a response to the wishes and the aspirations of the customer".