The History of the Folsom Outlets and why it was built?

For starters, the Folsom Premium Outlets is an 80 store (actually 62 stores operate here, with 13 vacancies at this present time in July 2024) outlet mall at the intersection of Folsom Blvd and Iron Point Road right of US 50. It has 296,035 sq feet of retail space. It is the closest Factory Outlet mall to Sacramento and the only one in the Sacramento metro area. The next closest outlet mall is the Vacaville Outlets which is 32 miles from Sacramento and 53 miles from Folsom. Outlet malls are known for selling the overstock from retailers and their irregular merchandise. But factory outlets got their start in the 1930s when manufacturers started selling their surplus merchandise directly to consumers right outside of the factory. They gained popularity with consumers because they didn’t have to wait until department stores started having sales on products they wanted. Then as time went on, starting in the 1960s, customers preferences moved to the malls and developers were inspired to build shopping malls dedicated to factory outlets(1), which is what Folsom Outlets is. The Folsom Outlets were built and opened in 1990, which was a huge success. But the location of the mall is interesting, since the location doesn’t represent the typical location of an outlet mall. They are usually located near a major interstate route, in a major tourist town, and in the suburbs. Folsom Outlets is in the suburbs away from the city and it is on US 50 and is on the way to a major tourist destination, South Lake Tahoe. But it is 84 miles from Lake Tahoe and only 20 miles from the city, which is not much help in becoming a stop for travelers. And I-80 and I-5 are much more popular interstate routes from the Sacramento and San Francisco area to other places in the state and the Western United States. But the outlet mall was successful and is continuing to be a popular place for shoppers in the region with major outlets like Nike, Coach, Michael Kors, Levis,
and Gap continuing to operate there. And new outlets such as J. Crew planning to open at the property(3). Which is despite the fact of its general location and even its location in the city being away from its major thoroughfare, East Bidwell Street, which it is 3-4 miles from and 8 minutes from, and the fact that the outlet mall hasn’t received a renovation since 2000, when it was expanded to the east to include where Levis, Gap, and the then Saks Off 5th outlet are at. Saks has since closed that outlet to move to the Creekside Town Center in Roseville(4), which they also closed later(5), which could be a sign the outlet mall is not as popular for retailers as it once was. The area around the mall has been struggling with retaining major tenants. The only sit down restaurant on the property, Applebee’s, only operated for a few years until it closed in 2008 during the recession, and the restaurants that came after Casa Ramos which lasted from 2010 to 2020, and Mariachi’s from 2020 to 2022, have both gone out. Taco Bell which was next to the movie theater closed, in order to focus on other Folsom locations, which is a rarity. The McDonald’s next to the outlet mall was slow to remodel to its newest look till 2023 and had the honor to be the last McDonald’s in the area to have play equipment from the 1990s, which they removed a few months ago and the restaurant later closed this month, October 2024 (5)(6). And even the mall has lost all its tenants in its food court. Despite the outlet mall’s unusual location, the outlet mall and the area continue to hang on with a popular movie theater, two hotels, and a Chili’s next door also. 

 The malls that have opened since the Folsom Outlets nearby are the Galleria at Roseville in Roseville 15 miles north, the largest mall in the Sacramento area, built in 2000, Fountains at Roseville a lifestyle center next to the Galleria in 2008, and the Palladio at Broadstone in Folsom itself built in 2009. And power centers such as Broadstone Plaza built in 2001 and Folsom Gateway in 2004. These centers have provided major competition, but the outlet mall continues to be the only outlet mall in the Sacramento area. 

 (1) The History Of Outlet Malls: From Factory Outlets To Shopping Destinations: https://www.outletshoppers.com/the-history-of-outlet-malls/

(2) Q&A: The differences between an outlet and mall store by Mary Chao https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2016/06/02/q-differences-between-outlet-and-mall/85286328/ 

(3) J.Crew Factory begins work on new Folsom Premium Outlets store by Jake Abbott: https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2024/07/24/jcrew-factory-joining-folsom-premium-outlets.html 

(4) Saks Off 5th closes store at Folsom Premium Outlets by Sonya Sorich:https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2015/04/16/saks-off-5th-closes-store-at-folsom-premium.html 

(5) Saks Off 5th permanently closes in Roseville; space could get new future by Sonya Sorich: https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2021/09/07/saks-off-5th-closes-in-roseville.html 

(6) When McDonald’s remodels a location with an Indoor PlayPlace, they often replace the equipment with new play equipment right away. The fact that this McDonald’s kept the old equipment a year after its remodel and removed it and have been slow to replace it, might be a sign of this retail area’s struggles. According to PlacerAI, this location only had 19,000 visits in June of 2024, which is less than the two McDonald’s on East Bidwell, one at Broadstone Plaza and one at Folsom Faire, which have between 32,000 and 36,000 visits each.

(7) McDonald's restaurants closes near Folsom Outlets: https://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/news/2024/10/08/5-things-mcdonalds-closes-near-folsom-outlets.html