Westmoreland Mall seeing strong holiday turnout

It seems as if — at least this holiday season — what was old is new again at Westmoreland Mall.

On a December afternoon, the mall is buzzing with happy shoppers, hungry food court patrons and cheerful Christmas tunes. Children wave to their parents from the Christmas train, a kiosk worker drives a remote-control car around shoppers and husbands sit on benches filled with shopping bags, waiting — mostly patiently — for their wives.

The scene at the Hempfield mall certainly doesn’t paint the “dying mall” picture that has dominated shopping mall rhetoric over the past decade. Though crowds aren’t what they were 30 years ago, Westmoreland Mall shoppers still have difficulty finding a good parking spot.

“Business has been strong this holiday season,” said Stacey Keating, spokeswoman for CBL Properties, which owns the mall. “After the pandemic, a lot of people realized the value of in-person experiences.”

The most recent data collected by CBL Properties shows an upward trend of Westmoreland Mall visits throughout this year. As of September, foot traffic at the mall is up 10% compared with last year, Keating said.

Jakob Kadagishvili, owner of high-end sneaker store Kadiskicks, said his first Christmas at the mall has been “nothing but a blessing” as he’s seen an uptick of customers.

“Everyone claims the Westmoreland Mall is a dying mall, and it’s not,” said Kadagishvili, who opened the shoe store in June. “We have a lot of foot traffic and college students.”

Though stores are seeing more holiday visits, that doesn’t necessarily mean more holiday sales.

Suzanne Ward — owner of the gift shop RSVP, which has locations in the mall and on Route 30 – said economic concerns are driving customers to spend less. She’s noticed more people window shopping or socializing at the mall this season.

“There’s definitely a lot more people coming in, but the common theme we’re getting from shoppers, with prices being so high, they’re cutting back on their spending,” Ward said.

RSVP’s mall store, which opened in 2020, will leave the mall in 2023 because of the pop-up nature of its location, Ward said.

However, she applauded the Westmoreland Mall for attracting more visitors.

“The mall has done a great job getting more advertising out and getting people in the door,” Ward said. “… They can’t control where the economy is at.”

Keating said the mall has opened seven new tenants in the past 12 months. Some attribute growth, in part, to the opening of Live! Casino Pittsburgh.

The popularity of online shopping signaled, for some, the end of the shopping mall. However, shoppers still seek the chance to admire giant Christmas trees, bump into a friend or grab a chicken sandwich.

The in-person benefits brought Amy Zvara of Southwest, a neighborhood in Mt. Pleasant Township, to the Westmoreland Mall on Thursday.

“It’s good to interact with other people,” Zvara said, holding shopping bags. “And it gets you in the spirit.”

Still, others will do most of their shopping from the comfort of their homes.

Jess Wuslich of Greensburg said she typically shops at the mall when she’s looking for something specific. Most of her shopping is done online.

“I can find anything online without leaving the house,” Wuslich said.