Whitefish mall sees surge of new businesses

After weathering the recession, the sun seems to be shining on Mountain Mall in Whitefish, where six new businesses have signed leases and two existing businesses recently expanded.

Mall General Manager Tom Kraus is encouraged by the growth spurt.

“This recession has been the most difficult business environment in my lifetime,” Kraus said. “I had thought we’d see stronger recovery early on in 2011 and we did not.”

But by November and December last year the inquiries started coming in and Cafe Max Soup Co. and J & B NYC Fashion signed leases. And the calls kept coming.

Machallie G’s, a Kalispell women’s clothing boutique, opened a boot boutique at Mountain Mall and now plans to add a clothing store there.

Cloud 9 Furniture Consign & Design will be opening soon, offering high-end furniture consignment and resale.

Angela Barrett has opened a counseling office at the mall as well, and existing businesses National Park Reservations and Connie’s Tax Service have expanded to occupy more space.

“We try not to gauge the economy one month at a time, but compared to the last three years it’s very encouraging,” Kraus said. “My enthusiasm wants to burst out, but I want to be cautious, too.”

Mall occupancy dropped to 84 percent during the recession and now is up to 93 percent. Pre-recession, the mall was 97 percent full.

Mountain Mall was built in the mid-1980s when the trend was to build small-format interior malls in resort towns, Kraus said. It was a fad that didn’t work well in some communities, but Mountain Mall has survived largely because of its mixed-use format.

“Our mixed-use business model is unique,” he said. “Operating interior shopping centers in towns of less than 10,000 presents some unique challenges and opportunities.”

Located along U.S. 93 just south of downtown Whitefish, Mountain Mall is owned by The Carrington Company, a small private company based in Northern California that owns properties in about 29 states. Kraus has managed the mall for 12 years.

He’s also been encouraged by recent reports of increased sales from retail tenants.

“I’d like to call it moderate growth,” he said.

During the recession it was a necessity to keep lease rates extremely competitive, Kraus said.

It’s been important to invest in maintenance of the facility, planning for larger upgrades such as a new roof installed in 2007 and putting money into ongoing repairs as needed.

“We save money by doing good [ongoing] maintenance,” Kraus said.

He’s noticed that new business owners coming on board are much more careful about upfront opening costs these days.

“If they survived the recession they’re a lot smarter about what they need to open their business,” he said.

Canadian visitors continue to be a vital lifeline for mall businesses and Whitefish as a whole.

“We love our Canadian neighbors,” Kraus said. “They’ve been very supportive of Whitefish, if not the whole valley, during some tough times.”

Canadians are coming more as families these days, he has observed, and that bodes well for the mall’s family-oriented events such as the children’s fishing derbies in May and June.

Kraus said Mountain Mall enhances the overall shopping experience in Whitefish that also includes the many downtown retail businesses.

“There’s plenty of room for everyone,” he said. “If we work at marketing Whitefish as a whole it will be beneficial to everyone.”

Kraus still has a couple of retail spaces and a couple of office spaces available to lease, but for now he’s well pleased with the upswing in activity.

“I’m hoping this trend will continue,” he said. “I think growth will be slow and steady.”

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.