The Shoppes at Sands get Talbots, Guess and Nine West

Now that Sands casino officials have people spending millions of dollars a week on slot machines, table games and food, they're hoping patrons still have some money left over for handbags, jeans and shoes.

Talbots, Guess and Nine West are among several factory outlet stores due to open Nov. 1 at the casino in south Bethlehem, with two dozen more due to open in February.

Sands officials have remained tight-lipped about which stores will be in the new mall, but Talbots Outlet Store, Guess Factory Store and Nine West Outlet all have applied for building permits from the city's Planning Department in recent weeks.

"What I can say is that we are on target to have eight to 10 stores ready for a soft opening Nov. 1," said Sands spokeswoman Jennifer Reese. "The rest will be ready for a February grand opening."

The Shoppes at Sands will be the Lehigh Valley's first collection of outlet shops. To this point, shoppers in search of trendy name-brand merchandise at reduced prices have had to drive to the Crossings Premium Outlet in Tannersville, Philadelphia Premium Outlets in Limerick, VF Outlet Village in Reading or Liberty Village Premium Outlets in Flemington, N.J.

City officials have said the 30-35 stores at Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem will have many of the same clothing, accessories and shoe factory stores as those other outlets. Sands has yet to announce which will be coming to the 200,000-square-foot mall.

Guess, headquartered in Los Angeles, is scheduled to have one of the anchor spaces, at nearly 6,500 square feet. Founded in 1981, Guess built a clothing empire around designer jeans. But as it was overtaken by the likes of Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, the company has remade its brand and style to include not only clothing, handbags, watches and shoes for women, but also merchandise for teens and men. Though its annual report lists nearly 900 stores worldwide, its shop at Sands will be only its eighth outlet store in Pennsylvania.

Talbots, based in Hingham, Mass., is scheduled to occupy a 4,160-square-foot shop at Sands, according to its building permit filing. Established in 1947, Talbots sells upscale women's clothing, shoes and accessories. While it has hundreds of retail stores nationwide, Talbots' website lists just 29 outlets across the country, including four in Pennsylvania.

Nine West, whose parent company, the Jones Group, also owns women's apparel sellers Jones New York and Anne Klein, has applied for a 2,410-square-foot space where it can sell its handbags, shoes, jewelry, hats and sunglasses. With hundreds of retail shops nationwide, its closest outlets are in Tannersville, Monroe County; outside Doylestown, Bucks County, and at Limerick, Montgomery County.

All three of the new outlet shops will be along a corridor connecting the casino floor to the Sands Hotel, according to the building permits.

"It's just one more reason to come to the city, and hopefully those new people will venture into the community and spend some time — and money," said Joseph Kelly, city director of community and economic development, said of the outlet stores.

The building permits for each store likely will be approved by the end of the month, said Eli Skrimcovsky, the city inspector handling the Sands outlet mall. Building permit applications for the remaining five to seven outlet shops have not arrived, but Skrimcovsky said the new shops could be built quickly.

Sands opened its casino on time in May 2009, but construction of the hotel, outlet mall and events center was halted in November 2008 with the arrival of the global recession. While the economy continues to limp along, Sands' casinos in Asia are posting big revenues and its casino in Bethlehem has become the second-busiest of the 10 casinos in Pennsylvania.

The 300-room hotel opened in May, and the events center is expected to be open early next year.

For leasing information contact:

Jeffrey T. Was

President

The Was Group

862-203-4352