RICHMOND, Texas – In a major win for Fort Bend County, NewQuest Properties has landed Skechers USA Inc. for the line-up in the Grand at Aliana, securing a 10-year commitment from the Fortune 500 company for a prized end cap spot.
“Skechers was looking at this space prior to Covid. It’s now one of three retailers that have come back to us in this market in recent months,” says Josh Friedlander, vice president of Houston-based NewQuest Properties, who leases the power center along with David Meyers, the firm’s leasing director.
Skechers has leased 8,012 sf in the Grand at Aliana, located at the intersection of West Grand Parkway and West Airport Boulevard in Richmond’s southern tier. Chris Campion of CAC Realty represented the shoe retailer, which is planning to open by year’s end.
“Skechers has traditionally gone into malls and not outdoor power centers like the Grand at Aliana. It’s a shift in strategy for a market that is on fire,” Friedlander says.
The Grand at Aliana is tucked into a one-million-sf corridor of new retail, one of the top markets in the nation. Occupancy is hovering 98% in the NewQuest project, which broke ground three years ago.
“Leasing activity is back to pre-Covid levels,” Friedlander says. “Everything that’s built or under construction is getting gobbled up.”
Within the three-mile trade area, the population has spiked 103% since 2010, pushing total households to nearly 75,000. More than 1,600 new homes are rising annually in the corridor and 4,476 more sites are slated for future development.
The growth of the rooftops is the prime attraction as national brands jockey for positioning in the rapidly expanding corridor. NewQuest’s anchor roster features Michaels, Ross Dress for Less, Ulta Beauty and Burlington.
“Openings have been steady. Retailers are doing the research and joining in the party,” Friedlander says. “Skechers is a strong addition to our well-established anchor core.”
NewQuest’s build-out capacity is 400,000 sf in the Grand at Aliana, which is adjacent to a Target-anchored center and brand-new H-E-B grocery store. The stretch of retail is supported by a cross-access agreement.
“We only have a couple spaces left in Phase I that could be ready to open in the next year,” Friedlander says, “but we have the capability and land to build more.”