King of Prussia (shopping mall)

Aerial view of King of Prussia Mall before the 2016 expansion that connected the two malls

The King of Prussia mall is located in the census-designated place of King of Prussia,[4] in Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Philadelphia. The mall is near the convergence of four major highways: the Schuylkill Expressway (Interstate 76), the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Interstate 76/Interstate 276), U.S. Route 202, and U.S. Route 422.[5][6] The mall is located northeast of the Schuylkill Expressway and south of the Pennsylvania Turnpike on the north side of US 202 between Gulph Road to the southwest and Allendale Road to the northeast, with Mall Boulevard providing access to and running through the mall grounds between Gulph Road and US 202. Mall Boulevard passes under a portion of the shopping mall. Ramps to and from the westbound direction of the Schuylkill Expressway connect to Mall Boulevard.[5][7]

SEPTA Suburban Division bus routes 92, 99, 123, 124, 125, and 139 serve the King of Prussia mall at the King of Prussia Transit Center along with other stops in the mall complex. These bus routes provide service to the West Chester Transportation Center in West Chester, the Norristown Transportation Center in Norristown, Phoenixville, the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby, Center City Philadelphia, Chesterbrook, Valley Forge, and Limerick.[8] The Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association operates The Rambler, a community shuttle around Upper Merion Township that has two stops at the King of Prussia mall.[9]

The Pavilion

The mall has several outparcels, and several luxury and affordable hotels are nearby.[7] Among the outparcels is the Overlook at King of Prussia shopping center, which consists of a United Artists Theatres, Saks Off 5th, and an iFLY indoor skydiving center.[10] Lockheed Martin has a campus overlooking the mall area.[7] Also located nearby is the King of Prussia Town Center, a lifestyle center that consists of Wegmans, multiple big-box retailers, and a downtown area with dining, retail, and service establishments and a Town Square.[11][12] The town center is part of the Village at Valley Forge, a 122-acre mixed-use development under construction that consists of retail, apartments, townhouses, condominiums, office space, and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's Specialty Care and Surgery Center.[11][13]

The expansion corridor of the King of Prussia Mall connecting The Court and The Plaza

King of Prussia mall is anchored by Nordstrom, Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Primark and a diverse merchant mix of over 450 stores, including a collection of luxury retailers. The mall is owned and managed by Simon Property Group of Indianapolis. The mall has annual sales of $1.1 billion.[14] A selection of international dining options are available at three food courts and in multiple casual and fine dining establishments.[6]

The mall is a prominent tourist destination in the Philadelphia area, with an estimated 20% of visitors as tourists.[2] The King of Prussia mall attracts 22 million visitors annually.[14] Several nearby hotels offer mall tourist packages, which typically include mall gift cards. Due to the mall's size, several retailers rent more than one space.[15]

A covered outdoor walkway connects Macy's and Neiman Marcus. The eastern portion of the mall (originally known as the Court) has two anchor stores, Macy's and Bloomingdale's. It originally had a third anchor, Abraham & Straus, which sold its store in 1988 to Strawbridge & Clothier, which subsequently relocated to the former Wanamaker's location at The Plaza in 1996 upon its acquisition by May Department Stores. Its spot was redeveloped as the Pavilion at King of Prussia. Stores in this section include a double-level Urban Outfitters, Old Navy, and The Cheesecake Factory.

In 2018, King of Prussia was valued at $2.77 billion and had sales per square foot of $773, making it the 8th most valuable mall in the United States.[16]

The Plaza before the 2018 renovations

The Plaza at King of Prussia, the oldest portion of the complex, opened in 1963 as a modest open-air shopping mall anchored by JCPenney, discount department store E. J. Korvette, and an Acme "A-Frame" style supermarket. By the late 1970s, The Plaza had become a partially enclosed super-regional mall anchored by department stores JCPenney, Gimbels, and Wanamaker's. At this time, The Plaza consisted of a small, fully enclosed section (connecting the three department stores) and a sprawling outdoor mall (featuring Woolworth's and Acme Markets).

Around this time, the Plaza's parent company began construction on a second mall, The Court at King of Prussia, directly across the street. The Court opened in 1981 as a fully enclosed mall anchored by department stores Bamberger's (which became Macy's in 1986), Bloomingdale's, and Abraham & Straus (A&S). In addition, Sears was added to The Plaza, relocating from Norristown. Sears was built as a "store of the future," and was completed alongside an expansion of the multi-level portion of the Plaza.[17]

Through the 1980s, The Plaza featured such stores as Woolworth's, Herman's World of Sporting Goods, and a Lionel "Kiddie City" toy store. The Woolworth's store closed in 1993. The Plaza also featured two 1980s style video arcades, each named Spaceport, and the RKO Stanley Warner (later Sam Eric, and then United Artists Plaza) movie theater which, in an era before multiplexes, had only one extra large 70m screen.

The outdoor covered walkway connecting Macy's and Neiman Marcus before the mall's 2016 renovation

Further expansion took place in the early 1990s, to create appropriate space for Lord & Taylor, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom locations. During this process, the two malls, The Court and The Plaza, were connected by a pedestrian bridge and walkway, and marketing from then on presented them as a united entity. The new Plaza is fully enclosed and has two levels throughout. Lord & Taylor opened in the fall of 1995, while Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom opened in the spring of 1996. As of 2023, the mall's Neiman Marcus location is the only location in both the Philadelphia Area and Pennsylvania.

The anchor lineup at both malls changed during the late 1980s and through the 1990s as the industry consolidated. Gimbel's closed in 1986 and was replaced with Stern's. Abraham & Straus closed in 1987, and was replaced with Strawbridge & Clothier in 1988. Stern's was replaced with JCPenney in 1992, moving from their original building in the middle of the Plaza, which was turned into mall space during the early 1990s Plaza redevelopment.

Boscov's was slated to take over the Wanamaker's location.[18] Instead, in 1995, John Wanamaker was replaced with Hecht's, due to May Department Stores purchasing and rebranded all Wanamaker's as Hecht's, their Baltimore-Washington regional nameplate. In 1996, Hecht's at The Plaza became Strawbridge's, and the Strawbridge's at The Court closed. In 2001, the former Abraham & Straus/Strawbridge's building at The Court was converted into more mall space. This expansion was named "The Pavilion."

King of Prussia Mall near Bloomingdale's

The mall served as the home of the Philadelphia Freedoms tennis team of World TeamTennis in 2008 and 2009. Whenever a tennis event was to occur, a temporary tennis stadium that seated 3,000 was constructed in the parking lot of the Bloomingdale's anchor store. The Freedoms left for The Pavilion at Villanova University in 2010.[19]

In 2011, Simon increased its ownership of the King of Prussia mall from 12.4 percent to 96 percent, buying Lend Lease's 50 percent ownership of the mall. Lend Lease had bought its stake in the mall in 1996, with Kravco, Simon, and three family trusts owning the remaining 50 percent at the time.[20]

Expansion connecting The Court and The Plaza at King of Prussia under construction in January 2016

The former Wanamaker's/Hecht's/Strawbridge's building had been a Macy's since 2006, when May Department Stores dissolved Strawbridge's. This second Macy's location was closed in favor of the location at the Court. The Macy's building and adjacent parking garage were then demolished during the fall of 2011, to make way for over 100,000 square feet (9,300 m²) of retail space and additional parking.[21]

On November 29, 2011, Simon Property Group announced plans to create an additional 140,000-square-foot (13,000 m²) expansion/connector to connect The Court and The Plaza.[22] This new retail connector features 50 stores, restaurants with an upscale dining pavilion, and a customer lounge. Upon completion, this project made King of Prussia mall the largest official shopping mall in the United States (larger than Mall of America in overall square footage, though not in quantity of shops), and placed the mall under one roof for the first time in its existence. The 155,000-square-foot (14,400 m²) expansion also includes a new parking garage "with speed ramps, space location technology and valet service."[23] Construction on this expansion was estimated to cost $150 million.[24] Several outparcels were also proposed for this expansion.[25]

On November 18, 2014, construction began on the expansion to connect The Court and The Plaza.[26] The expansion opened August 18, 2016, with two ribbons joined from The Court and The Plaza.[27] Simon Property Group COO Rick Sokolov and U.S. Representative Brendan Boyle were present for the ribbon tying ceremony.[28]

King of Prussia entrance between Neiman Marcus and Macy's, 2021

In January 2014, Sears announced that it would sublease some of its space to Dick's Sporting Goods.[29] Sears closed this location entirely in early December 2014. It was announced that Irish retailer Primark would be on the first level of its space while Dick's Sporting Goods would take parts of the second level.[30] The Primark store opened on November 25, 2015.[31] In 2015, Sears Holdings spun off 235 properties, including the Sears at King of Prussia, into Seritage Growth Properties.[32] Portions of the former Sears Auto Center are now Outback Steakhouse and Yard House. On March 17, 2017, JCPenney announced that its store would be closing as part of a plan to close 138 stores nationwide;[33] the store closed on July 31, 2017.[34]

The western section of the mall (also known as The Plaza) went under renovation in April 2018, which added new flooring and handrails, LED lighting, and additional soft seating areas and restrooms. The renovation was completed in May 2019.[35]

On October 5, 2019, Happy Place opened on the second floor of the former JCPenney building. It left on February 29, 2020, as part of a national tour.[36][37] On May 3, 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Montgomery County opened a COVID-19 vaccination site in the former JCPenney space, which has since shut down.[38]

In August 2020, Lord & Taylor announced that it would close its stores, including in this location, as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[39] The previous Lord & Taylor store is being reconstructed for a modern office use concept.[40]

In June 2022, it was announced that Wayfair, an online retailer of furniture and home goods, would open a brick-and-mortar store in the previous JCPenney outpost. The store will feature a cafe and a rooftop deck with a bar. The Wayfair store is planned to open in 2023 or 2024.[41]

• List of largest shopping malls in the United States

Wikimedia Commons has media related to King of Prussia Mall.

• Official website