SANTA MONICA, Ca. (5/20/02)--The first Macy's department store in northern California's Santa Cruz County opened its doors earlier this month at Capitola Mall.
The two-level, 101,000-square-foot store adds a higher-end fashion dimension to an anchor mix at the 586,735-square-foot mall that already included Sears, Gottschalks and Mervyn's. “Adding Macy's expands our market share,” said David Contis, executive v.p. and chief operating officer of Capitola Mall owner The Macerich Company (NYSE: MAC).
Contis also noted that the addition of Macy's has accelerated Macerich's ability to enter discussions with more upscale or fashion-forward national and regional specialty merchants. For example, Abercrombie & Fitch and Vans are scheduled to open at the mall in late May and mid-June, respectively. These newest retailers will follow the earlier debuts of such retailers as American Eagle and Ambiance Collectibles, the latter merchant featuring a full-line of upscale Brighton accessories.
These and anticipated future improvements to the mix are expected to enhance mall store sales that had already grown to a current level of $363 per square foot from $263 when Macerich acquired the property in October 1995. Over that same time frame, the center's small store occupancy level rose to 98.3% from 93%. Capitola Mall serves a captive market of over 250,000 residents in 90,000 households. Average household income exceeds $86,000.
“Macy's has long been a favorite destination for residents of Santa Cruz County who traveled outside the area to shop,” said Chris Thoryk, Macy's Capitola store manager. “We're thrilled to now be in Santa Cruz County and a part of the Capitola community. The response we have received from the community has been overwhelmingly positive.”
“We are very excited to have Macy's join our shopping center,” added Tod Strain, Macerich senior manager, property management. “Based on initial response from community residents and Capitola city officials, we feel the addition of Macy's will further enhance the shopping experience at Capitola Mall and add more great shopping to Capitola's 41st Avenue retail district.”
Macy's selected the mall as the second site for its new store prototype that includes family apparel, accessories and homegoods, but excludes furniture. The store's brand lineup in apparel includes such names as Polo by Ralph Lauren, Kenneth Cole, Tommy Hilfiger and Liz Claiborne, along with Alfani, INC, Charter Club and some of the chain's other popular private labels. In cosmetics, the store features trend lines such as M.A.C., BeneFit and Shiseido, along with Lancôme, Estee Lauder and Clinique. Top home vendors include Calvin Klein Home, Ralph Lauren, Waterford, Nambé, Calphalon and All Clad.
“Residents of Capitola will no longer have to travel several hours to find quality brand name merchandise,” said Jerry Sullivan, chairman and CEO of Macy's West. “We listened to the community of Capitola and Santa Cruz to learn what they wanted in our store. We're confident that the new Macy's Capitola will live up to the Macy's reputation.”
The Macerich Company is a fully integrated self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust, which focuses on the acquisition and redevelopment of regional malls and community centers throughout the United States. The Company is the sole general partner and owns an 80% ownership interest in The Macerich Partnership, L.P. Macerich owns interests in 46 regional malls and four community centers totaling over 41million square feet. Additional information about The Macerich Company can be obtained from the Company's web site at www.macerich.com.
For Capitola Mall leasing information, contact Andy Cook, senior manager, leasing, Macerich, P.O. Box 4814, Carmel, Ca. 93921. Telephone is (831) 624-0137.
Media contacts:
At Macerich, Susan Valentine, senior v.p.-director of marketing, (310) 394-6000; at Parness & Associates Public Relations, Bill Parness (732) 290-0121.