Shoppers flock to mall for grand opening

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This article was published 09/05/2017 (3053 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More than 1,000 shoppers surrounded Winnipeg’s newest mall primed to open their wallets and welcome a new retail option to the city last Wednesday.

Outlet Collection Winnipeg opened on May 3 and is the city’s first pure outlet retailer at 400,000-square-feet.

At 10 a.m. anxious shoppers, some of whom had claimed a spot in line before sunrise, rushed through the mall’s doors to cash in on door prizes and early bird deals. The first 1,000 people in line received a $30 gift card to spend in the mall and other retailers were offering opening day specials.

Tammy Reimer arrived at the mall shortly before 9:30 a.m. from her home in Lorrette, Man.

Reimer, who often shops at outlet centres in Minneapolis and Florida, said her family was excited to check out DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse and Under Armour. Standing in line to enter one of the many draws the mall was offering, Reimer said she’ll have to wait and see whether she’ll be spending her dollars close to home in the future.

“As long as the deals end up being as good as they are in the States,” she said. “Then why drive to Minneapolis?

“It’s a beautiful mall, which it should be I guess,” Reimer added. “It’s amazing, and nice and modern looking and bright.”

Bahija Zeid accompanied her mom Rashede to the mall on its opening day but parked across Sterling Lyon Parkway in the IKEA lot. The mall’s nearly 2,300 parking spaces were already occupied when they arrived.

After leaving Saks OFF 5th, Zeid said apart from the swarming crowds the mall was living up to her expectations.

“It seems nice — it kind of feels like it’s from the States,” she said, adding that her family also travels south to visit outlet malls across the border.

Without having a chance to check out many of the retailers, Zeid said the prices seemed “not bad.”

“It’s typical and it’s kind of what I expected,” she said. “I don’t know how much of an outlet mall it will be.”

Jan and Rai Balagtas hauled their two children, aged six and eight, to the shopping centre for opening day and navigated the crowds with one of the mall’s smart carts.

At $10 for the day and a tablet installed in the front to keep the kids entertained, Rai said the smart cart was an amazing amenity to have as they strolled the mall.

“It has lots of selection,” Rai said. “It would be nice to have some spots for kids — like a simple playground.”

Both mayor Brian Bowman and premier Brian Pallister spoke at the mall’s grand opening and a number of city councillors, including Marty Morantz (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Whyte Ridge) and John Orlikow (River Heights-Fort Garry) were also on hand for the ceremonies.

Bowman said the mall’s presence in the city was an indicator of Winnipeg’s growth, adding that the property will bring in $3.5 million in taxes to the city.  

“We should really applaud those that do not reside, and businesses that are not from Winnipeg, that are putting skin in the game, that are investing in Winnipeg, and we want to thank them.”

Ivanhoé Cambridge, developer of the mall, announced it will also donate $10,000 to a local charity. The public is encouraged to vote in person or online (www.outletcollectionwinnipeg.com) for a charity of their choice to receive the donation. The charity with the most votes will be awarded on June 8. Voting ends May 31.

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Shoppers are flooding in for Outlet Collection Winnipeg's opening day pic.twitter.com/FjSe37v6AN

— The Sou'wester (@SouwesterWPG) May 3, 2017