MERIDIAN, Idaho — Alo is the first of 16 new stores coming to the Village at Meridian. The expansion's grand opening is set for Oct. 9.
Alo opened its doors Friday morning at the Village at Meridian expansion — with shoppers lining up to be among the first inside.
WATCH | Alo opens first at Village at Meridian's new expansion
The yoga and lifestyle brand is the first of 16 new retailers, restaurants and businesses set to welcome shoppers to the expanded center. The expansion adds about 85,000 square feet of retail space, with most stores expected to open before the holiday season.
Hugh Crawford, vice president of property management with CenterCal Properties, said Alo opened ahead of the expansion's official grand opening.
"We've got a group of stores opening on the 9th, but Alo was ready and said we're ready to go on the 25th, so we let them open," Crawford told me.
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It didn't take long for shoppers to notice. Abigail Davis, who works nearby, said she had been anticipating the opening for months.
"I've been so excited. I've been waiting like for so many months for this to come in," exclaimed Davis.
Crawford said the retailer mix was shaped by feedback from the community.
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"We hear from our, we hear from the community, we hear from our customers. We, you know, social media, they talk to us." Crawford began.
As shoppers stopped in their tracks outside the new store, Crawford pointed to the reaction as proof of the demand.
"You hear the excitement about Alo being open," Crawford said. "See, they're coming out. People are fired up. Yeah, that's the kind of excitement we're going to see with each of these store openings."
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Next Friday, three more stores are set to open — Tecovas, Kendra Scott and Gorjana. In the weeks that follow, shoppers can expect additional openings, including Vuori, Paris Baguette and Tempur-Pedic.
"The community was ready," Crawford said.
The Village expansion will host its grand opening on Friday, Oct. 9, at 10 a.m., with all-day live entertainment, giveaways, food and performances.
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