VF Outlet Center, one of first of its kind, to get new owner

VF Outlet Center in Wyomissing is under agreement to be sold to a Philadelphia-based real estate company that wants to redevelop the site for office and retail use, according to the seller.

The outlet’s owner, VF Corp., based in Greensboro, N.C., declined to disclose the sale price. It said it hopes to finalize the deal this fall with Equus Capital Partners Ltd., said Vanessa McCutchen, spokeswoman for VF Corp.

A spokeswoman for Equus said the company would not comment on the pending deal.

Equus Capital Partners is a private equity fund real estate manager that owns $4 billion in assets that include commercial and residential properties.

Equus plans to redevelop the 53-acre site, which includes 16 buildings, into offices and retail, McCutchen said.

Today, the million-square-foot VF Outlet Center is half as full as it was during its height in the mid-1990s. Tenants include Dooney & Bourke, Bass, Timberland and Reebok. Reading Health System has an office, and Down Under Fitness has a gym at the center.

A previous deal to sell the VF Outlet Center fell through in 2014.

As the Reading area’s outlets, once major tourist draws, have declined or closed over the past decade, the region’s economic boosters have pinned hopes on seeing the outlets get redeveloped.

The Big Mill Outlet Building, part of the once-popular Reading Outlet Center, was successfully redeveloped by the Shuman Development Group as a residential and retail complex for $23 million. The Big Mill Apartments opened in May with 69 luxury apartments.

When it opened in 1970, the VF Outlet Center was one of the first retail centers of its kind. The sprawling retail complex composed of large, empty factories was filled with discounted merchandise from apparel companies that found another market to sell their discontinued merchandise or items from previous seasons. At its height, the outlet drew dozens of packed tour-buses a day.

Decades later, the VF Outlet Center became a victim of changing consumer buying habits, which have migrated to the internet, and of its own success, having spawned outlets in other municipalities.

Source: LVB