In Las Vegas, imitation has been the mother of much tourism-related invention. Witness casinos modeled after iconic cityscapes, and sports facilities that mimic America's great baseball stadiums. Consider Town Square the exception to the rule. Although more downscale than a multibillion-dollar themed megaresort, it is no less ambitious: 112 mixed-use acres originally designed as a central gathering place for locals.
But a strange thing happened on the way to becoming the city's first town square. According to General Manager Mike Wethington, what was initially built for locals, with its storefront streetscapes, pedestrian-friendly streets and mix of Old World and contemporary architectural styles, hasmorphed into so much more.
"There was supposed to be a residential component, but that component didn't pan out because of the economy," Wells said.
Meant to attract locals looking for an open-air shopping, dining and entertainment experience in a nongambling environment, Town Square's business mix -- an 18-screen movie theater, 16 restaurants, 115 stores, office space and a children's park -- has made it into a popular tourist attraction.
So much so, in fact, that nearly 40% of its customers come from out of town. Some just stumble upon the place, Wethington said, while others make a point to shop or dine at the local outpost of their favorite chain. The retail mix includes popular national brands like H&M and Ann Taylor, while dining options feature familiar chains like Claim Jumper and specialty restaurants like Texas de Brazil.
"We get all types [of tourists]," Wethington said, from conventioneers and business travelers to families and shopaholics.
The ultimate 'Strip' mall
Developed by Turnberry Associates and Centra Properties, Town Square is located at Las Vegas Boulevard at the junction of I-15 and I-215, about two miles south of the Mandalay Bay hotel-casino.
Being on the Strip has helped with promoting the property. Shuttle-service arrangements with Strip hotels and timeshares, partnerships with hotel concierges and cross-promotional ventures with properties have generated significant interest outside the market, said Mary Kathryn Wells, director of marketing for Town Square.
"As a special treat for tourists, we offer Town Square Rewards, which features discounts from some of our shops and restaurants," Wells said. "The Town Square Rewards coupon book is available at most hotel concierge desks on the Strip. Guests can also buy products through the Town Square website and get gift cards to restaurants, free popcorn at Rave Theaters and more."
According to officials, several of Town Square's businesses are among the top-performing locations in their national chains. Blue Martini is the martini bar's top-grossing location, out of 10 nationwide. Rave Theaters performs near the top of the theater chain's 70 complexes nationwide. At any given time, the Yard House restaurant might best all of its sister locations, while Whole Foods Market is not only the largest of its four local stores but also the only grocery store on the Strip.
"Sixty-five percent of our business comes from tourists," said Sara Taylor, marketing specialist for Whole Foods Market. "We get a lot of business from the timeshares. We have a partnership with a delivery service that caters to timeshare properties and Strip properties, where tourists and condo residents can order groceries online and have them delivered."
Taylor said Whole Foods at Town Square also sees many professional chefs stopping in to buy products to prepare meals for visiting clientele. "We sell gluten-free products as well as breads and pastas, which chefs use to create meals for customers with specialty diets."
On the restaurant side of things, 14 of Town Square's 16 dining establishments are new to the market and are doing well, including Texas de Brazil steakhouse. Candyce Hedlund, public relations director for Texas de Brazil, said the Town Square location offers the best of both worlds. "In megaresorts, you're business is mostly guests of the hotel," she said. "But being in a separate environment -- we're still technically on the Strip; tourists can get here by cab -- we're able to capture all markets."
Hedlund described Texas de Brazil management as "really satisfied with business" in Vegas. "This location took off," she said. "It's in the top five in sales for all of our locations [15 in America]."
Something for everyone
There's similarly good news in retail, Wells said, with many of Town Square's chain stores performing well. One store in particular, the 26,000-square-foot H&M store, has drawn tourists from all over the world.
"A lot of retailers visit Las Vegas. The Magic convention [the bi-annual Men's Apparel Guild in California convention draws 75,000 to 95,000 conventioneers and was in town in August] sends a huge buzz through the retail world, which promotes the city and Town Square," Wells said.
"On their trips here, a lot of people in the apparel industry come to look at Town Square. A lot of stores are continuing to open even in these tough times. We have shop-and-stay events where we work with our hotel partners on promotional packages."
Additional amenities include a Borders bookstore, Euphoria salon and Pete's Dueling Piano Bar, which opens at 7 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays; the dueling pianos begin at 8 p.m.
The highlight of the Children's Park is a tree house in a 42-foot tree featuring a climbing rope, slides and a fort connected by a bridge. For girls, there's the Princess Tower Playhouses, which has connecting walkway and slides. A mini-water park features a fountain with 35 jets.
Taken together, all of Town Square's accoutrements add up to a unique experience in a city of unique experiences, Wethington said. "We're right across from the airport and down the street from the rental car center. We have the closest grocery store to most of the resorts on the Strip and to the nearby timeshares. We're still looking at opportunities for site expansion for future development. This place was designed to look like a city that developed over time, and it seems to be working."
Town Square is open Mondays through Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
There are eight entrances, three covered parking garages and 5,800 storefront parking spaces. Town Square is a 10-minute taxi ride from most Strip hotels.
For more information, go to www.townsquarelasvegas.com or call (702) 269-5000.