Battlefield Mall changes personnel, store lineup

The stores aren't all that's changing at Battlefield Mall lately.

Christine Moses replaced Kristy Henson as director of marketing, and as of April 23, Tim Winger began working as the mall's general manager, a position formerly held by Mike Romstad.

Battlefield Mall welcomes Winger and Moses with five vacant spaces to be filled.

The vacancies include the loss of two tenants due to corporate bankruptcies Montgomery Ward and Natural Wonders the removal of the Battlefield Mall Cinemas and two spots in the food court.

The pair have their work cut out for them, but according to the new mall manager, a strategic marketing plan is in place to help.

"You'll see more of a local flavor to our marketing that will be Battlefield Mall-specific, which is a little bit of a change of direction for (Simon Property Group Inc.)," Winger said. "We're very excited about it ... our marketing, advertising and promotional efforts will be more localized than they have been in the last couple of years."

Both Winger and Moses are well-equipped in the marketing department.

Moses studied marketing at Webster University in St. Louis and graduated with a business management degree. She previously worked as director of marketing at Alton Square in Alton, Ill., for three years.

"I've always had my eye on Battlefield," said Moses, who's worked at the mall since the first week of April. "It's a great team to work with here."

Winger brings more than 14 years of mall management experience with him. He too comes from a Simon mall: Crossroads Mall in Omaha, Neb., which he managed for more than a year. Before that he worked for Simon's corporate headquarters in Indianapolis as manager of the merchant resource network. The bulk of his experience was with another mall management company, General Growth, where he worked for 12 years. Winger earned his bachelor's degree in marketing from Drake University.

To him, vacancies are not a problem. "We always look at it as an opportunity when we get space back ... it's an opportunity to bring in somebody bigger and better in very valuable space," he said.

A recent acquisition has filled one hole for Winger, but created another. Dillard's Inc. announced April 25 that it had purchased eight former Montgomery Ward store locations for a total of $21 million, including the one in Battlefield Mall.

Winger had hoped Montgomery Ward would be replaced by a store new to Springfield's market.

Natural Wonders will be gone in 30-60 days and a new tenant has not yet been determined, he added.

Other recent additions to the mall include China Max, a new Chinese restaurant in the Food Court, and Triple Play Sports, a sports memorabilia store, next to The Sunglass Hut. It also has a location in Bass Pro Shops.

Coming soon, Winger said, is a Hallmark-owned photography studio called Picture People to take the place of Kid's Foot Locker. He said construction is starting June 11 and the new studio will be open Aug. 1.

Winger added that he hasn't specifically addressed the vacant cinema spot yet.

"It's a big space with a big opportunity," he said. "That could be an exciting opportunity for the mall to bring another strong retailer to the market. That's what's nice about working for Simon ... being the largest shopping center developer-owner, we have strong national leasing representation. This is a mall that does attract a lot of attention on the national level. When you have spaces ... it doesn't take too long to be talking to somebody about a deal."

Simon Property Group is the largest shopping center owner and manager in the country, he added, with 251 properties and 185 million square feet of gross leasable area. Winger said that Battlefield Mall is among the top 10 Simon Properties in visits per year.

Battlefield Mall's Simon staff of about 15 realize that. Moses said that her personal goal is to continue "to add value to the experience of shopping here."

In those efforts, she said, the mall is changing from gift certificates to the more popular gift cards, and it is doing away with Simon's Mall Perks, the mall's rewards program, which will be replaced by a new program.

Other changes to the mall include new furniture for the food court, which Winger said will arrive in the next 30 to 60 days. The two vacancies in the Food Court are a spot between McDonald's and Chick-Fil-A and the corner lot adjacent to Helzberg Diamonds. Winger said the latter has the possibility of being split in two because of its size.

Winger can soon add the vacancy of a kiosk to his list. Titletown Athletics, the sports apparel kiosk directly in front of The Gap, also is leaving the mall.

"I'd imagine somebody will be in that spot doing something else within 30 days," he said.

Winger is confident in the local market and that is why he came here, he said.

"This is a center that's performed very well before I got here," Winger said. "Battlefield Mall is a symptom of a very strong, dynamic community."