FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Debra Panzarella, Freehold Raceway Mall, 732-577-1300 x112
Rebecca Stenholm, Macerich, 602-953-6550
RENOVATION INSPIRES NEW RETAILERS AT FREEHOLD RACEWAY MALL
6 New Stores Announce Plans to Join Center's Mix
FREEHOLD, N.J. (Aug. 2, 2007) - Renovation is inspiring new retail locations at Freehold Raceway Mall. From Abercrombie & Fitch's newest concept to the latest fashion eyewear, 6 new stores have signed on to join the more than 200 retailers that comprise the Freeway Raceway Mall this Fall, its parent company Macerich® (NYSE: MAC) announced today.
Six of the just announced retailers new to Monmouth County are:
Ruehl No.925, a division of Abercrombie & Fitch, offers a mix of business casual and trend fashion created to appeal to the modern-minded, post college customer. The Ruehl No.925 concept is branded out of New York City's Greenwich Village and is displayed in the high quality clothing, leather goods, and lifestyle accessories. The store structure is a West Village apartment and is highlighted by fine furniture, dim lights, and modern art. The Freehold Raceway Mall location will be the company's second Ruehl No.925 store in New Jersey.
ROBOTGALAXY™, is a revolutionary kid's entertainment retail concept which will open one of its first two stores at Freehold Raceway Mall this Fall, 2007, coinciding with the launch of its comic book series. This unique in-store experience offers kids the opportunity to choose and customize their favorite characters from The Brotherhood, a squad of advanced robots newly returned from Saturn after a disappearance of almost 60 years, in an exciting environment that is part space station, part lab. Their Galaxy journey through the store begins at The Bridge and takes young Explorers through the Flight Deck, Lab, and Mission Control, as they personalize their robots by selecting from a range of motorized parts, accessories, decals, rover vehicles, and programmable features including sound, lights , and speech. The journey culminates at the “7th Ring,” where the robots are activated by the mysterious dust from the rings of Saturn.
Solstice Sunglass Boutique, a luxury sunglass specialty chain which specializes in upscale, high-end designer fashion sunglass brands, yet also offers more moderately priced bridge collections and active sport sunwear lines. With over 1,000 pairs of sunglasses to choose from, SOLSTICE has shades to fit everyone's style. Collections include Diesel, Dior, Emporio Armani, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Valentino and YSL among others. The Freehold Raceway Mall Solstice store will be it's first in Central New Jersey.
ProImage, which recently opened at Freehold Raceway Mall, specializes in gifts for the sports fan. ProImage is the only independent, officially licensed sports apparel and novelty franchise outlet on the globe. Pro Image began in June of 1985 in Salt Lake City, Utah with the opening of a licensed sports apparel and accessories kiosk and is now one of the fastest growing franchise operations in the United States. The Freehold Raceway Mall location is the first ProImage store in the state.
Charlotte Russe delivers a fun mix of trend-right clothing and accessories at value prices. The fashionable assortment includes casual and dressy looks as well as activewear and loungewear to compliment every facet of a young woman's lifestyle. Styles arrive constantly, so customers will find something new in the store every time they shop. The Freehold Raceway Mall Charlotte Russe store will be the company's first store in Monmouth County.
Amuse offers the latest trends in fashion accessories, jewelry, body piercing, hair accessories and gifts. Amuse carries an unparalleled selection of quality accessories and related items for any casual or formal occasion, including sterling silver and gold-plated cubic zirconia merchandise at a fraction of the prices at department stores. We primarily target teenagers but our products appeal to all fashion-minded women of all ages. Amuse currently has 16 stores operating across the United States. The Freehold Raceway Mall location will be the first in the state.
The enclosed 1.58-million-square-foot Freehold Raceway Mall is undergoing a complete renovation to create a more sophisticated look that will complement the architecture of the new, outdoor expansion to the center. The renovation includes new floor tile, paint, lighting elements and soft seating areas throughout the center, plus a newly designed Center Court and water feature. The interior renovation is targeted for completion in spring 2008.
"These outstanding retailers tell us they are coming to Freehold Raceway Mall because of the changes we're making to create an even better shopping experience," said F.K. Grunert, Senior Manager, Leasing, for Macerich. "Great retailers want to be where their shoppers are and we're confident that our center's new look and feel will be a tremendous hit with local residents and visitors."
"This is a very exciting time for our shopping center," said Frank Lucia, Senior Manager, Property Management, at Freehold Raceway Mall, referring both to the center's interior renovation and the fall opening of the 100,000-square-foot outdoor lifestyle expansion. "We are designing a community gathering place that retailers want to be a part of, and together the mix will create a dynamic shopping environment that is unparalleled in this region."
Located at the intersection of Routes 33, 9 and 537, Freehold Raceway Mall is owned and operated by Macerich. For more information and to receive regular e-mail updates, visit www.freeholdracewaymall.com.
Macerich is a fully integrated self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust, which focuses on the acquisition, leasing, management, development and redevelopment of regional malls throughout the United States. The company is the sole general partner and owns an 84% ownership interest in The Macerich Partnership, L.P. Macerich now owns approximately 77 million square feet of gross leaseable area consisting primarily of interests in 73 regional malls. Additional information about Macerich can be obtained from the Company's Web site at www.macerich.com.
