How South Coast Plaza remains unphased by mall decline

Los Angeles - In a time where most malls fail to attract business, Costa Mesa’s South Coast Plaza has continued to remain immune. The plaza just added another men’s store to their high-end apparel collection. Louis Vuitton men’s store just opened at the luxury shopping center this month. Additionally, Saint Laurent also relocated at the plaza moving upwards to a new space.

Last Thursday, the French fashion brand hosted a private event celebrating the boutique’s opening. The men’s store is merely an addition to Louis Vuitton’s existing collections. The fashion house already has its ready-to-wear for women’s available along with shoewear and accessories. As Louis Vuitton has been a long-time established company since 1854, the house has prided itself on curated, luxurious apparel for both men’s and women’s fashion. At the new store, Louis Vuitton will offer its men’s collection. Currently, we have reached out to Louis Vuitton for comment on the new location.

In addition to adding a new men’s store, South Coast Plaza had other retail changes. Taking over Sony’s former store; Saint Laurent relocated to a bigger, more efficient space. Originally on the third floor of the shopping center, the fashion label moved to the second floor as reported by WWD. Saint Laurent could not be reached for comment at the moment. The reason for the new store was not disclosed, however it is likely that the brand wanted to use the store to highlight their collection in a more creative way by utilizing the space. At 5,500 square feet, the store is double it’s old location in volume.

Saint Laurent relocates and Louis Vuitton men’s opens at South Coast Plaza

It makes sense that South Coast Plaza would be adding new stores continually. Although the upscale shopping center does well, shopping malls in general have declined. According to Ibis World, trends for revenue decline at malls has increased over the last couple of years. Because of online shopping and new advances in technology, shopping malls have struggled to keep their businesses alive. As reported by the New York Times, real estate investments trust analytics firm Green Street Advisors predicted in 2014 that approximately 15 percent of malls would fail or be converted into non-retail space within the next decade.

South Coast Plaza has beat the threat of closing by up-keeping with its standards and always changing. By keeping the environment new and fresh (with new store additions and revamped existing locations), the shopping center has avoided the declines in revenues that most other malls have faced. Saint Laurent’s relocation and Louis Vuitton new men’s store are only two ways that the mall has done this. Also, the store has continued to add new properties such as Cos, H&M, Massimo Dutti and more. With South Coast Plaza’s retail plan, it’s hard to believe that the shopping center is going away anytime soon.

Photo: South Coast Plaza

Attribution: Coolcaesar at en.wikipedia