The coronavirus pandemic has had a very negative impact on many retail businesses and restaurants around the country over the past year, but Oakbrook Center has seemingly weathered the storm pretty well.
And while some pandemic-related restrictions remain in place for businesses at the mall, the senior general manager is optimistic about the future.
“Retailers had to adjust, and they rose to the occasion,” Tim Geiges, senior general manager “Nobody closed due to COVID.”
Two restaurants in the mall — Red Robin and T.M. Basil — permanently closed in December 2020, but that was because of an expired lease and one that was close to expiring, Geiges said.
“We’ve had a lot of inquiries for those spaces,” he said.
Bridget Ballard, a public relations representative for Red Robin, said via email that the Oakbrook Center restaurant was closed as part of the company’s ongoing real estate reassessment. She would not comment on how many employees were affected by the closing.
Despite current restrictions limiting retail stores to 50% capacity, Geiges said business continues to increase.
“Traffic is coming back,” he said. “On any given Friday, Saturday or Sunday, more than half the retailers have lines outside of people waiting to go inside. We’re getting close to getting back to normal, and we’ve generally had very good weather, which helps.”
Teri Johnson of Westmont made her first trip Friday in more than a year to Oakbrook Center.
“I’ve been very careful because of the pandemic, but I thought I would come out, and I feel very safe shopping here today,” she said. “They don’t let the stores get too crowded, and everyone is good about wearing masks around others.”
The critical holiday shopping season in November in December was hurt by the pandemic, but even with a restriction, limiting capacity to 25% at that time, Oakbrook Center held its own, Geiges said.
“All things considered, our retailers and restaurants did a fabulous job adapting,” he said. “Santa visits, with social distancing in place, did well. People wanted some sense of normalcy.”
While COVID-19 has created numerous challenges for many businesses, some new stores have opened in Oakbrook Center over the past year, and others are moving ahead with plans to open.
Blue Nile, a jewelry showroom, opened in November 2020. Also opening in the past year into the former Lord & Taylor space were Tempur-Pedic, which opened about six months ago, and Arhaus, a furniture store that opened in February after moving from the Oak Brook Promenade on Butterfield Road.
Another newly-opened retail store in Oakbrook Center is the first-ever Champs Sports Community Store, which along with a full offering of Champs Sports products, also includes the first physical presence of Eastbay, which sells athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment.
Previously, 20-plus-year-old Eastbay had only an online presence, but this first physical is part of more than 20,000 square feet of the Community store, which opened Jan. 29 in a space previously occupied by Forever 21.
Coming soon are Lifetime Fitness, in mid-April, and the new Restoration Hardware gallery at the end of July. Restoration Hardware is being built, and running ahead of schedule, in a previous parking area in the southeast portion of the mall property and will replace an existing smaller store inside the center.
One business that has decided to not open, after extensive construction work had been completed in part of the former Sears space, is KidZania. However, Geiges said there has been considerable interest in that space from entertainment businesses.
He also said he is hoping for another sign this summer of getting back to normal with the return of free Wednesday night family movies being shown on a large screen in Oakbrook Center’s village green area.
“I’m hopeful that we’ll at least be able to have a partial schedule of movies,” he said.
