Retail Centers: The New Fitness Frontier
As consumers become increasingly health-conscious, fitness centers are playing a more central role in their daily lives. Due to the rapid growth of the $30 billion health and fitness industry and the growing interest in pursuing healthy lifestyles (20% of American adults have a fitness club membership), Brookfield Properties has incorporated fitness and wellness concepts into its redevelopment strategy. As more fitness options are added to our properties, our shopping centers are transforming into lifestyle destinations which offer shoppers more than traditional retail, and appeal to their health and wellness requirements. The addition of fitness centers creates a merchandise mix that satisfies the daily needs of consumers, and welcomes new customers to join in the new age of shopping centers.
Whether the consumer’s exercise of choice is cardio, swimming, yoga or cycling, our retail centers are outfitted to suit their needs. Here’s a look at some fitness brands that have been introduced to our retail centers and are engaging shoppers in a new way.
Life Time Athletic
Quail Springs Mall in Oklahoma City is the proud home to Life Time Athletic, a 236,000-square-foot athletic resort that hosts eight tennis courts, two basketball courts, two large training studios, one cycle theater, three yoga studios and a Pilates studio, and more than 400 pieces of cardio equipment. Its aquatic center includes indoor and outdoor leisure and lap pools, whirlpools, saunas as well as a bistro.
The resort offers a unique programming schedule, targeted at people of all ages. Kids Academy, a children’s program for kids 3 months to 11 years, provides classes including karate, yoga, music, Spanish immersion, tumbling and sports. The LifeCafe offers healthy options including breakfast, lunch, dinner and meals to go. Ultimate Hoops is the largest recreational basketball league in the country, featuring leagues and pick-up games for youths and adults. Customers can also visit The Zone, a space dedicated to athletic performance and recovery.
Indoor aquatic center at Quail Springs Mall
Photo courtesy of Life Time Athletic
Several of our properties, including Oakbrook Center in Chicago and Baybrook Mall in Friendswood, Texas, are currently in redevelopment and will be home to a Life Time Athletic in the coming year.
Orangetheory Fitness
Orangetheory Fitness, a one-hour ultimate workout concept that uses heart monitors to track clients’ heart rates, has made its way to Apache Mall in Rochester, Minnesota. The fitness center occupies a 3,500-square-foot space with its own exterior entrance and invites customers into its vibrant and colorful studio.
Residents of California can also enjoy Orangetheory Fitness at Otay Ranch Town Center in Chula Vista. Otay Ranch Center has become somewhat of a fitness mecca, housing five fitness retailers at their property including Orangetheory, Namaste Fitness (yoga), Title Boxing Club, Deseo Studios (dance), and Eastlake Soccer League. A Planet Fitness is also scheduled to open in the next year.
Inside Orangetheory at Otay Ranch Town Center
Peloton
Peloton, a company offering indoor cycling bikes that allow you to join live and on-demand boutique studio classes from the comfort of your home, featured a pop-up at The Woodlands Mall in Texas. At the Peloton showroom, local shoppers were able to take a test ride and learn more about the brand. Peloton associates were available to answer questions and help customer place pre-orders. Peloton brick and mortar locations are now available at 5 of our properties, including Natick Mall, Park Meadows and The Streets at Southpoint. Peloton also opened a location at its first Chicago-area store at Oakbrook Center in 2016.
Peloton pop-up at The Woodlands Mall
Additional Fitness Concepts
Popular fitness concepts, like Equinox and SoulCycle, have been incorporated into our merchandising mix, appearing at centers like Shops at Merrick Park in Coral Gables, Florida. The shopping center has other tenants in the fitness space, with stores like lululemon and Athleta just minutes from the gyms and equipped to suit the needs of any fitness fanatic. In addition to retailers like lululemon and Athleta, our property portfolio includes Dick’s Sporting Goods and Fabletics, a digital native that specializes in high-quality athletic wear and accessories.
Athleta at Shops at Merrick Park
We are thrilled to be introducing fresh ideas and experiences to local communities and are excited to continue bringing new fitness centers and retailers to our shopping centers.
With properties situated in some of the most highly trafficked areas of the United States, we offer the ideal fitness space for your leasing needs, including the best spaces for your fitness and wellness centers that can introduce you to our health-conscious consumers.
*Header image provided by Life Time Athletic