A recent article in Commercial Property News profiled Hidalgo County, Texas. "Hidalgo is the poorest county in the country, with more than 250,000 people and 35 percent living below the poverty line. But it is also home to one of the highest-grossing shopping malls, spurred by consumers from Mexico who cross the border.....Monthly sales were reported at $450 per square foot - much higher than the national average of $392."
It was reported in this article that Simon Property Group Inc. which already owns two malls in this area are planning a 600,000 square foot shopping center and a 400,000 square foot Premium Outlets upscale outlet. It was also pointed out that McAllen, Texas is the first major shopping point in the United States for consumers travelling from Mexico and it is such a popular area that it claims the No. 1 stores in the Dillard's, Denny's and Red Lobster chains.
This article really points out the power of crossborder shoppers to border town communities. Do these type of numbers correspond to U.S. border towns along the Canadian border? I would assume that Canadian shoppers have greater selection within their own country than do Mexicans. However, I would also assume that Canadians have a higher disposable income. Even with the greater choices within Canada, there are different stores in the States and sometimes this variety can be enough to attract shoppers. It would be interesting to see if studies have been done along the Canadian / U.S. border similar to this article about Texas and Mexico. There is currently planned a large lifestyle shopping center north of Ferndale, Washington less than 10 miles south of the Peace Arch crossing to British Columbia. While this area of Washington is growing significantly, it does not appear that sufficient population within this area alone would support the center. Therefore, the developers must be counting on a significant amount of crossborder Canadian shoppers into Whatcom county to support the retail stores.
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