The competition for frugal fashion is kicking up a notch at The Oaks Mall.
Swedish franchise H&M announced this week the retailer would open a store in Gainesville in the spring.
And it’s settling in across the hall from giant mall tenant and competitor Forever 21.
“To be honest, I’m not really concerned at all,” said Giovanni Arroyo, the visual co-manager for the Oaks Mall Forever 21. “If anything, I’m excited because of the competition that it’s going to bring. I feel companies need competition to thrive.”
The 23,000-square-foot Oaks Mall H&M will occupy the space across from Forever 21 that includes PacSun, which will move to a smaller spot near Express.
Jordan Sun, assistant store manager at the Oaks Mall PacSun, said rumors of an H&M have been circulating in the mall since last spring, but the general consensus among managers and customers is excitement.
“It’s another fast fashion outlet for people to go to,” Sun said. “And more people seem to fit the description of what an H&M customer looks like.”
Sun, who is also a 22-year-old UF science in management graduate student, said the store offers a lot of basic and professional attire that will appeal to a college crowd.
“It’s super cost-friendly, especially for college students who need something quick for a job fair,” he said.
Sun said PacSun’s new location will offer more merchandise, thanks to a remodeled layout.
“It’s kind of like addition by subtraction,” he said.
To gear up for all of the mall’s changes, Arroyo said he has been cracking down on his team to make sure the store is in excellent condition.
“We definitely want to bring in new customers and still keep our loyal customers when H&M does arrive,” Arroyo said. “The whole point is that they will have to walk through our store first. If we can get them to, then we can get them before H&M does.”
[A version of this story ran on page 3 on 11/13/2014]
