A popular national discount chain is the latest addition to the changing Shawnee Station shopping complex.
Five Below opened its newest location earlier this month at 15300 Shawnee Mission Pkwy.
It’s a discount store aimed at younger customers
- According to the company, its aim is at “trend-right, high-quality products loved by tweens, teens and beyond.”
- Most items are priced between $1 and $5, with products $5 and above being placed in its “Five Beyond” section.
- Their stores are broken up into different sections including Style, Room, Sports, Tech, Create, Party, Candy and New & Now.
- “We just had to slash our family budget, so I was excited that one opened up around here,” said customer Sherry Lynch. “I still want our family to have fun and shop at a fun place and this place is pretty fun.”
The national chain is growing
- Started in 2002, Five Below now has about 1,300 stores in 42 states, according to press materials from the company.
- The Shawnee store is the latest in its plan to more than double their footprint by adding at least 1,500 more stores in the United States. There are already Five Below locations in Overland Park and Olathe, and another location is planned to open at Merriam Town Center.
- “I definitely have been seeing more pop up, kind of like Dollar Generals,” said customer Ryan Merrick. “I think people just want to stretch their buck as much as they can.”
The store fills a void in the shopping center
- The storefront fills a long-vacant spot at Shawnee Station complex that was previously home to a Pier 1 Imports home goods store. After that, the space was occasionally occupied by Spirit Halloween in the fall.
- In the past year, other stores have either moved in to the shopping center or plan to open, including Rack Room Shoes, Ross Dress for Less and an upcoming new location for Bath & Body Works and White Barn.
- “It’s good to see this plaza kind of making a comeback. I know some of us were scared when Bed, Bath & Beyond closed,” Lynch said. “It’s always good to see new things coming to the area, and I think that says a lot about Shawnee.”
Go deeper: More shakeups at Shawnee Station complex, as 2 national retailers move in
