Sumter Mall/Jessamine Mall, Sumter, SC

     Between the loopholes of eclipses, move-in dates, and quick planning, I found myself in Sumter, SC, very unexpectedly. Of course, the city has a mall, so I had my priorities up quickly. This mall didn't disappoint, and I was happy with the plan. I found an alive small town gem with good business at an odd time of the day. Anyways, here at SkyMall, we hope you enjoy this very unplanned post on a very odd mall.

We begin this with two exterior shots. The mall is plain and small, and the Belk is origin-all? I'm trying to be creative here.

     The history of the mall is unique and interesting in many ways. It opened in 1980 as Jessamine Mall, "named for the state's flower," as called. The flower is actually the yellow jasmine, which through slang and the constitution, was called the jessamine by the developers. Leave it to rural SC to do that.

    The original anchors were Belk-Stroman, Capitol (Sumter department store, closed after two years), Wilson's (catalog store), and JCPenney. Wilson's was something rare for a smaller mall to see, being that with most people living nearby, they could go in and out easier. Capitol joined a list a stores that lost excitement after leaving downtown, and heavily declined. It would be interesting to see how life would have been if Capitol stayed in downtown, then left for Richland or Columbiana. Capitol instead closed after two years in operation. Only three years later, Wilson's was purchased by Service Merchandise which switched the Sumter store to their own. Columbia's own Tapp's chain entered the mall in 1986 via Capitol closing. In 1995, Tapp's went belly-up and closed their only store outside of Cola-Town. Another three years later, and Belk-Stroman became simply Belk. Sumter Mall was the only location ever for Mr. Stroman. The proverbial revolving door continued with the bankruptcy and shuttering of Service Merchandise in 2000. With two vacant anchors, one was replaced by Sears, and the other by Sykes Enterprises, a call center, in 2009. Apparently, Sears became Roses sometime between now and then. Roses is a Southeastern discount chain based in North Carolina. 

And here are some very exciting mall entrances. Said no one ever. To the left of Belk is an unconnected Belk Kids store. 

In Hull Storey Gibson malls you get a Hull-lot of carpet. And there will be a Hull-lot of puns in this mall.

So stop, read, and smell the Roses! Bwahahha!

The Sumter, SC photos and history throughout the mall is a sneaky way of covering vacant space. American Eagle would do well in that location.

Not much to be Syke-d about on this mall entrance, but they tried. 

     Aside from the history, there isn't much to be excited about elsewhere. The mall was purchased by Hull Storey Gibson in 2000, and renovated (or more fittingly, 'refitted') in 2002. Like literally every other Hull mall, fountains were stripped, carpet was added everywhere, and the mall lost its character. I can imagine center court being beautiful back in the day, but that is the opposite of today. Carpet and a semi-nice skylight/atrium fill up the court. It doesn't have the feel of a meeting place, but more like a place to sit down and people watch. If there is one thing that irks me about this mall, it's clearly the lack of color.

Looking out of Belk. To the left would be a good location for Shoe Dept., which is on an outparcel on the outside. Ross Dress for Less, Ulta Beauty, IHOP, maybe a local appliance shop, Michael's, and some local college shop would fit well in the eventual demise of JCPenney or the vacant space.

Chains still have a large presence here. Cato, on second thought, would also work somewhere. Vacant space has very little Foot-ACTION in a mall.

     At this point, Sumter Mall is in an odd position. It's been doing well for what it has to deal with, but who knows how sustainable this is. Sumter has a fairly strong, stable economy with Shaw AFB, general life jobs, parks, a growing population (over 60,000 people at the moment), and a few local colleges. This makes it unique in that the city has a decent future to see. The big problem is that Sumter isn't directly on I-95, which leads up to better malls in Florence, or bigger ones a couple hours away in Charleston. Only forty minutes west is Columbia, with strong retail, population, and a stronger economy. Sumter probably needs a mall, but the pickings are slim. If there isn't a quick fix whenever JCP closes, then Sumter Mall gets placed in a bad position (view up for store options, on third thought Burlington is preferable but would work). If the response is solid, then Sumter has a major shopping venue for years to come.

     If I were Hull, I would put a plan in place. This would include a new renovation, small expansion, and store options for vacancies. I wouldn't be afraid of doing something completely radical and different, as this often can work if pulled off correctly. I would advise as to not make stupid mistakes or go completely mindless. 

Jewelry World is one serious local shop. Looks pretty legitimate and has top-line jewelry. While I have a problem with mom & pops in city malls, it shows interest when placed in smaller town malls.

Main mall entrance with a few restaurants to the right. Sykes probably gets these eateries some business for lunch.

Here's the weird inline Belk Kids store. I have no problem with using vacant space, but I would have a problem fixing up the family's wardrobe.

     If there was one Hull mall to visit, I would probably go with Sumter. While I've only covered this one so far on this blog, it's one of the more successful ones. It has a future and interest. It's a sunny forecast for malls when there is cloudy for most. If you make a mall a destination, it brings people. If you make a mall look like a guest bedroom, you deal with the consequences. I seriously hope Hull is listening and takes my advice. That is probably not the case though.

Sumter teens enjoy the options of Rue 21, given that Belk or Penney's are the other main options. 

Yes, there is a CFA here. Clearly something went right.

How nice would a grand fountain look here?

Books-a-Million is great to see here. Once a Waldenbooks, small town mall bookstores bring another group of people to a mall. If you're the only bookstore in town (highly unlikely for Sumter), then you must go to the mall for reading material.