FOREST ACRES, S.C. — Belk and Barnes & Noble have confirmed that they are leaving Richland Mall.
Frequent shoppers like Clyde Sanders, who has been shopping at the mall since he was a kid, are grappling with the idea of saying goodbye.
"All the stores pretty much left," Saunders said. "Except for Belk and Barnes & Noble and a couple of other places."
Last year, it was announced that Richland Mall in Forest Acres would undergo a $100 million redevelopment with Belk staying as the anchor store.
Belk has made the decision to close their location in Forest Acres and focus on their other two in the Columbia area. This Belk has been an anchor store at the Richland Mall since 1998.
Belk will have a sale starting August 11th, which will offer 65% off original price items in store and clearance items at 75% off.
Barnes & Noble will be moving to the old Bed Bath & Beyond location at the Shoppes at Woodhill in the early months of 2024. They say they do not expect any problems transitioning to the new location.
Janine Flanigan, senior director of store planning and design at Barnes and Noble, says the transition will be smooth.
"As long as we are able to maintain our lease, which we expect, we will continue to trade and be open until the new store is ready, Flanigan said. "We're already working on the space. Our construction team has been there a number of times. The plan really is to close one store and open the new store the next day."
Lenora Randolph has also been a frequent shopper at the mall for many years and believes that while it's sad to see it go, it will bring many opportunities.
"To the ones that come here regularly, yes I think it's going to be a loss," Randolph sand. "But for the simple fact that they're going to build this area up since it's been here for years, I think that will be a great outlook."
There is no confirmed date for Belk's store closing or Barnes and Noble's new store opening.