Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/62026
plus a growing population of ultra-Or- thodox. When other neighborhoods in this section of the Israeli capital — in- cluding Arab-populated Shuafat — are factored in, some 300,000 of those living within a 10-minute drive will be patrons of the new mall. This is nearly half of Je- rusalem's total population of 800,000. "We're on the cusp of so many mar- kets: the religious and nonreligious, Jew- ish and Arab," Schecter said. Indeed, sitting all around were customers who were as diverse as he was describing: here a table of yarmulke-wearing yeshiva students, and there another at which sat two sports-togged women. The Tshuva Group's Phoenix Hold- ings owns 70 percent of the mall, and Bayit Chadash Beyerushalaim owns the rest. The Naama Malis architecture firm designed the project. Some 40 stores were operating as of November, and about 10 more are slated to open over the next few months, while plan- ning continues for a third floor that will house an additional 30, bringing the total shopping space to some 269,000 square feet. "We'll be Jerusalem's sec- ond-biggest mall," said Oren Fabian, the mall's manager. "Northern Jerusalem has nothing [else] like this." Alongside such well-known Israeli chains as apparel retailer Fox, the Ramot Mall contains the likes of U.S. tenant Payless ShoeSource. "We work hand in hand with the lo- cal rabbis to ensure the comfort of the religious shoppers," said Schecter. "The rabbis are in favor of the mall and have told their followers that it's OK to shop here. But we've instituted a few rules to enable that to happen." Among these is a rule that says the ads in the windows and inside the stores must not show much skin. Another concession to reli- gious shoppers is that both male and fe- male security guards are employed — at Israeli malls, guards check all the shop- pers. And like most malls in Israel, the Ramot Mall closes down from midday Friday until after sundown on Saturday for Sabbath observance. Payless, for one, targets some of its merchandise here to a religious clientele. The Ramot store offers a wider variety of the black, no-frills shoes that ultra-Ortho- dox shoppers favor. The space is designed to adapt too. "Even though our stores in Israel are identical to those in the U.S., the branch here in Ramot was built with wider aisles to accommodate baby stroll- ers for those families with a lot of chil- dren," said Michael Drumm, worldwide operations manager for Payless. "It was our goal from the beginning to create a center that everybody can en- joy visiting," said Fabian. "And as long as we promote tolerance, then it's going to be great." SCT SITES WANTED! KIDDIE ACADEMY® CHILD CARE FRANCHISE Turn-key 15 year lease Freestanding, office, retail Ground-up leasing opportunities 7,000 – 10,000 square feet with adjacent outdoor play area Visit www.kiddieacademy.com/RECON2012 to see where we are developing and submit a site or set up a meeting at ICSC 2012 RECON in Las Vegas in May. All developers, landlords and brokers welcome. This advertisement does not constitute an offer to sell a franchise. 188 SCT / MAY 2012