How Boscov’s survives in the shadows of so many dead malls

As store manager of the Neshaminy Boscov’s, Michael Fanelli has heard one question repeatedly from customers: “Are you closing with the rest of the mall?”

The answer, of course, is no. Boscov’s is outliving the mall next door.

It is not the first time: Of the retailer’s eight Philly-area locations, six exist at malls that are shuttered, repurposed, or in the process of being transformed.

The Reading-based chain has persisted despite uncertainty for department stores. But can Boscov’s — a place where older women flock and where the vast majority of sales occur in-person — attract and retain millennial and Gen Z customers? How long can the company thrive with old-school vibes?

Time will tell. But at the moment, energy is high inside Philly-area Boscov’s.

Days before the Neshaminy Mall’s Oct. 31 closure, the massive two-story department store was buzzing with activity from the shoe section to the greeting-card aisle.

As surrounding retailers have shuttered, “there hasn’t been a reason for the last few years to come to the mall,” Fanelli said as he stood between colorful racks of children’s clothes. “We’re very fortunate that people are choosing to come here.”

Nearby, Kathy Oschman, 67, of Croydon, and her neighbor Sandi Aragon, 66, said they visit the Bensalem Boscov’s weekly. The pair like to shop in-person, Oschman said: “Everything is closing. Where else can we go?”

“I came for one thing today,” she said, laughing, as she lifted a large bag. She ended up spending $100 on sale items, including Christmas decor and a baby gift. Their trips get sidetracked, too, the friends said, by conversations with Boscov’s employees, many of whom have worked there for decades.

“People like coming in, getting out of the house, and seeing a smile,” said Fanelli, a Boscov’s employee for 29 years, the last 10 in Bensalem. He is confident that customers will keep coming.

On a mid-October Monday, the Boscov’s at the otherwise-vacant Echelon Mall in Voorhees was bustling.

“I hope they don’t go away with the rest of the mall,” said Jeannie Dorazio, 66, of Blackwood, who shops in person at Boscov’s because she likes to feel her clothes before purchasing. She was happy to hear it’s expected to stay open as developers and township officials figure out the mall’s future.

At Boscov’s “you always get whatever you’re looking for,” said Dianne Williams, 72, of Pine Hill, who was buying a Thanksgiving tablecloth during a 15%-off sale.

A week later, the Exton Boscov’s — next to the recently closed Exton Square Mall — was jam-packed on a Wednesday for the chain’s annual “Friends Helping Friends” day, when customers get 25% off in exchange for a $5 donation to a local charity.

In the shadow of the vacant mall and its overgrown greenery, excited Boscov’s shoppers — mostly middle-aged and older women — filled the department store’s parking lot.

It’s a scene that CEO Jim Boscov said he has seen countless times at the company’s 51 stores, nearly three dozen of which are in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Boscov’s customers are so loyal, he said, that store managers seldom need to change their strategies if adjoining malls shut their doors. He said Boscov’s usually has long-term leases — often 20 years with multiple 10-year extensions — that allow stores to stay open.

As long as Boscov’s is still there, the top boss has learned, customers will come.

And they will come in person. Only about 7% of Boscov’s annual sales occur online, according to the CEO. By comparison, about 17% of all retail sales nationwide happen on the internet, according to U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

At Boscov’s, “the in-store experience is something that’s very special,” Jim Boscov said. “The goal would honestly be to try to replicate that online, but it’s very hard to do.”

And so far, it hasn’t been necessary for the survival of the 110-year-old family business.

As a privately held company, Boscov’s is not required to disclose its earnings, and its CEO declined to provide specific numbers. But he said annual sales continue to be “in the ballpark” of $1.2 billion, a number that appears not to have changed in about 18 years. Other retailers such as Kohl’s, Target, and Macy’s have seen revenue plateau or decline in recent years, according to their earnings reports.

When Boscov’s filed for bankruptcy in 2008, the company reported about $1.25 billion in annual sales, along with $90 million in debt. The retailer emerged a year later, after the late Albert Boscov, Jim’s uncle, repurchased the company, saving it from the fate of other chains that did not survive the recession.

Jim Boscov, 77, attributes the company’s staying power to its wide selection of products, “very aggressive” pricing, and 8,000 personable “coworkers,” who know many regular customers by name. He is optimistic that younger generations will be drawn to Boscov’s for these same reasons, and then some.

“If you’re successful, you want to keep doing what’s made you successful, but it doesn’t mean you want to stay static,” Boscov said. “You have to remain relevant to people with the products that you sell and the way you communicate with them.”

In the middle of the Exton Boscov’s, Cyndi Woodruff, 31, used one arm to push her 6-month-old in a stroller. In the other, she balanced a pile of holiday pajamas and Philly sports gear for her family of four.

When leaving home this morning, “none of this was part of my plan,” Woodruff said with a laugh, motioning to the haul. She had intended to use the 25%-off “Friends Helping Friends” discount on toys and other holiday gifts for her children.

Woodruff, of Lansdale, used to frequent the Exton Square Mall next door. In recent years, she said she has visited the complex only to shop at Boscov’s with her 59-year-old mother, Denise Gowie.

Gowie, of West Chester, has been a Boscov’s customer for at least 30 years and has remained loyal for many reasons: “The clothing. The fit. Definitely the pricing. And the selection.”

Gowie held a handful of shirts that she said would be about $3 each after the discount.

“I always say there’s a lot of hidden gems at Boscov’s,” Woodruff said.

Boscov’s customer base has traditionally consisted of women in their 50s and 60s, the CEO said, but the company is trying to attract younger consumers like Woodruff. Stores have expanded their maternity sections and children’s shoe departments, he said, and started selling viral skincare products to compete with Ulta and Sephora. Boscov’s has also focused more on digital marketing than newspaper ads.

There are early signs that these moves are paying off, Boscov said: Over the last two years, the company has seen a 17% increase in shoppers under 40.

“I’m delighted to see that,” Boscov said, “and I’m delighted to see it without jettisoning the older customer.”

Upstairs at the Exton store, near where a line of women with full carts waited for the elevator, Marie Bantum, 70, browsed bedding with her sister, Carlette Hines, 64. The women, both from Coatesville, had already picked up Sealy pillows and a vacuum.

“We love Boscov’s,” said Bantum, who shops there about once a week. “Boscov’s better not change.”

In many ways, walking into a Boscov’s feels like going back in time.

At some stores, neon signs direct customers toward products now hard to find at any brick-and-mortar store — let alone all in one place.

Boscov’s sells mattresses, air fryers, furniture sets, holiday decor, clothing, children’s toys, and jewelry. Their stores have optical departments and hearing aid centers. At some locations, Boscov’s travel advisers can help plan your next vacation.

Walking into Boscov’s “gives me the same feeling I had when I was a kid and we had all those [department] stores,” said Heather Giove, 46, of Delran. “And every time I go I think of Nan.”

Nan was Giove’s late grandmother, Marilyn Gaul, a regular at the Moorestown Boscov’s.

“I’m not the shopper that my grandmother was,” Giove said. “But if I need something, it’s the first store I go to.”

Boscov’s was founded by Solomon Boscov, a Russian immigrant who sold housewares to Berks County farmers before opening the Economy Shoe & Dry Goods store in Reading in 1918. The first full-service Boscov’s opened in suburban Reading in 1962. For years, the company opened new stores in suburban malls, before branching out into some midsize cities.

A 1987 Inquirer headline called Boscov’s “an elixir for struggling downtowns,” such as Wilkes-Barre. In the article, former CEO Al Boscov, son of Solomon Boscov, said: “We believe very, very strongly that there is such a thing as loyalty,” between the customers and the Boscov family and vice versa.

The sentiment is shared by the current boss, Jim Boscov.

But today, instead of helping revive urban centers, Boscov’s often finds itself as a conduit between suburban malls’ past and future.

Such was the case at the old Granite Run Mall in Media, where the interior shopping complex closed in 2015. That structure was torn down and rebuilt as the Promenade at Granite Run, with apartments, restaurants, new retail, medical offices — but the Boscov’s stayed.

Boscov’s was among the “strong tenants” that boosted foot traffic during the transition, said Michael Markman, president of BET Investments, which built the Promenade at Granite Run.

In Bensalem, Mayor Joe DiGirolamo has said Neshaminy Mall’s owner, Lakewood, N.J.-based Paramount Realty, wants to knock down the 1 million-square-foot interior mall and build something new, though the developers have not revealed details. They have said the AMC, Barnes & Noble, and Boscov’s would remain.

“Malls go through life cycles,” Jim Boscov said. “We’ve been there while the mall is vital and vibrant, and we’ve been there when the mall is dying, and then we’ve been there when the mall has been reimagined.”