As department stores continue to adapt to the evolving retail climate, corporate bigwigs have recognized that monstrous stores simply don’t work in every market. As such, unprofitable locations are being shuttered. While should be a good thing for those companies bottom lines, it can lead to a downright nightmare for property owners and landlords. What will they do with all of that empty space?
As prescient owners know, today’s consumers are looking for a little more than a store that has anything and everything as a drawing card. If today’s shoppers are going to hang around for awhile and check out all that the property has to offer, there had better be something on the site that not only draws them there but also satisfies the desire for experiences.
Enter the rise of experiential spaces in malls and shopping centers, which is a trend that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Luckily owners and landlords have plenty of options to choose from on that front, but here’s an interesting one that can definitely be kept in mind.
As Fortune shares, former Major League Baseball star Alex Rodriguez is on the lookout for space. As in a lot of it. A-Rod and his partner have the license to open UFC-branded workout gyms in the Miami area. They’re not just looking for one spot either, but rather looking for shuttered brick-and-mortar locations to fuel their expansion in South Florida.
“It plays right into our wheelhouse,” Rodriguez said. “There’s not a lot of people looking for 40,000 square feet in shopping centers.”
Rodriguez and his partner have already taken over an existing UFC location in Kendall, Florida, and the grand opening for that spot is slated for next week. He notes that he’s looking for as many as 12 new locations that can house the gyms.
While there’s no talk of him expanding nationally at this point, this is exactly the kind of opportunity that mall owners across the nation should be on the lookout for. Fitness remains an incredibly hot segment and combining that with the explosively popular UFC brand points to a win-win situation.
A-Rod’s no slouch on the investment front, as he made a boatload of money during his playing career. He counts none other than Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffett as a mentor.
“I understand his philosophies, as much I can understand them,” Rodriguez said. “This is one he would have approved of.”
