When the Orchard Park Shopping Centre opened in Kelowna in the 1970s, it was so far from the town centre, many people questioned its location.
Back then, only orchards and fields surrounded the mall, which only had 21 stores.
Now, having celebrated its 40th anniversary, Orchard Park has 170 stores and has become the anchor of the city’s status as a regional shopping destination.
“We’ve got the biggest shopping centre between Vancouver and Calgary so our trade area has expanded quite a bit,” said Ron Stevenson, operations manager at Orchard Park Shopping Centre.
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Whereas there previously was only local and national retail outlets at the Kelowna mall, there are now international retailers like make-up giant Sephora, which opened Friday.
“This is the first store in the Kelowna region so hopefully everyone will be coming from all over the region,” said Elena Rybalkina, a Sephora spokesperson.
However, the city’s shopping attraction goes far beyond Sephora: Costco, Walmart, the countless strip malls and the seemingly endless supply of boutiques also attract shoppers from around the area.
“Kelowna has long been the leader of regional shopping. We do have day visitors from the Shuswap, Merritt and Revelstoke who come here to shop. It’s a critical part of our success,” said Caroline Grover, CEO of Kelowna Chamber of Commerce.
Retail now accounts for 13% of Kelowna’s workforce.
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