Trendy retailer Five Below is ramping up its presence in Colorado Springs
Nov. 10—Five Below is doubling down in Colorado Springs.
The trendy Philadelphia-based discount retailer, whose $5-and-under gifts, toys, games, beauty products, arts and crafts, clothing, home furnishings, jewelry and many other items appeal in large part to teens and tweens, will open a store in December at the Citadel Crossing shopping center, southeast of Academy Boulevard and Galley Road on the city's east side.
It will be store No. 2 in Colorado Springs for Five Below, which opened its first location about a year ago at the north-side Woodmen Commons shopping center, northeast of Academy and Woodmen Road.
Company officials didn't respond to emails seeking more information, though a sign has been installed on the façade of the retailer's Citadel Crossing space and Five Below's website says the store will open Dec. 2.
Five Below was founded in 2002 when it launched its first store in suburban Philadelphia, according to its website. Its concept was to sell items from $1 to $5, though some merchandise is a little pricier.
This year, the chain opened its 1,200th store in New York City, and now has locations in 40 states. In Colorado, Five Below has 14 stores in Arvada, Aurora, Castle Rock, Denver, Lakewood, Littleton, Loveland, Northglenn, Parker and Westminster.
Discount stores aren't new. Retail giants Walmart and Target have a strong presence in Colorado Springs, while Dollar General and Family Dollar have multiple area locations.
Five Below, which will occupy just over 12,000 square feet at Citadel Crossing, has become popular because it offers so many types of inexpensive merchandise under one roof, said Dan Rodriguez, a senior managing director with local brokerage Colorado Springs Commercial who markets retail space at the shopping center.
"The draw for Five Below is just that you can get a wide variety of things for five bucks or less, and that's at a price point that really doesn't exclude anybody and anybody can go in there and find stuff and look for things," Rodriguez said.
"We've had dollar stores for decades and we kind of know what's for sale there and what we can expect to find," he said. "What I hear from consumers is they're surprised what they can buy for five bucks. We know what we can get for $1; they're surprised how many more items $5 will buy."
Some teens and tweens have been raised on Amazon purchases by their parents, Rodriguez said. Visiting a bricks-and-mortar Five Below store and perusing items for $5 and under can offer them a fun retail experience, he said.
Five Below is among a series of new arrivals at Citadel Crossing, the 500,000-square-foot shopping center that opened in 1988. It runs along Academy's east side, between Galley and Platte Avenue; it was built by developer Patrick M. Nesbitt, who still opens the retail complex.
Chick-fil-A is completing construction of a Citadel Crossing location that's also expected to open in December. Restaurant Depot Express, a bulk food and supply store chain, opened in August at the shopping center; Mochi Thai'm Donuts and Indianapolis-based Hopebridge Autism Therapy Center also have opened at Citadel Crossing.
Citadel Crossing is anchored by a Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse and is home to Office Depot, PetSmart, Olive Garden, Chipotle, Jersey Mike's, the Black Bear Diner, Black-eyed Pea and the eight-screen Picture Show theater complex, among other stores, restaurants and service-oriented businesses.
