Article originally posted on Kota TV.
Article originally posted on Rushmore Mall has noticed a huge increase in sales compared to this same time last year. After the holiday season, mall shopping tends to slow slightly, however, Rushmore is seeing a noticeable uptick in sales, dollar per transaction amounts and overall traffic.
“Although the past year was challenging for several retailers, we really feel that this year was on the surface of some great things and great things as malls in general as people are wanting to get out there wanting to shop, yes there’s a little bit of pent up probably boredom, but there is also this urge to want to be in a community setting, people love people,” said Sandy Brockhouse, General Manager at Rushmore Mall.
“We are seeing more shoppers, we are seeing more money spent, more money spent more transaction and overall, we’re just seeing an encouraging trend, for retail in general,” added Brockhouse.
The upwards trend in transactions and traffic is a trend we’ve seen for a while across our portfolio at Spinoso Real Estate Group. After the shutdown, there was a lot of pent-up consumer demand and that has yet to slow down.
Not only that, but this past year showcased a transformed holiday shopping season – with a longer Black Friday, increased e-commerce worries, and higher spending. Consumers started shopping for the holidays in early October to avoid frictions or shipping delays. They also took advantage of early deals. Black Friday became a month-long sales event, instead of a day-long promotion. This allowed malls to avoid crowds and spread-out traffic across a longer period of time during the pandemic.
The positive sentiment towards Rushmore Mall is a note in the right direction for malls all over. According to 2021 predictions, malls are on the rise and their demand will continue to grow post-pandemic. Let’s face it – consumers miss shopping and the sense of community that malls bring.
As the retail mix continues to evolve in 2021 this will directly benefit malls and allow them to create a neighboring place that drives human connections.
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Located in Rapid City, South Dakota, Rushmore Mall is an enclosed, 832,000 SF mall that conveniently serves surrounding areas of western South Dakota, northwestern Nebraska and northeastern Wyoming. Featuring retailers such as JCPenney, At Home, Golden Ticket Cinemas, Victoria's Secret, Francesca's, and much more. In an on-going effort to support energy consumption, Tesla electric car charging stations are available for use in the mall parking. For more information visit RushmoreMall.com
