Rundle Mall gets festive for festival season
With the Fringe kicking off on Friday, Rundle Mall is offering extending opening hours and Friday cocktails for the duration of the festival season.
Dubbed MallFest, the month-long promotion kicks off on Friday and will see retailers open until 6pm each Saturday until March 17.
Manager of Adelaide’s Nike store Chris Fleming said the extra trading hours would help retailers capitalise on the increase of people in the city during that period.
“Foot traffic and sales were strong from 5 to 6 pm on Saturdays during the last festival season,” Fleming said of the return of the initiative for a second year.
“We are excited to make the most of all that’s happening in Rundle Mall and the city during this busy time.”
The Adelaide Economic Development Agency (AEDA) said foot traffic in Rundle Mall increased by 18 per cent during MallFest 2023 compared to the previous year, and city retail spending saw a 14 per cent increase of $127 million.
Cocktails will be on offer in the mall throughout MallFest from 11 am each Friday. Photo: supplied
AEDA executive manager for Rundle Mall, Andrew White, said the extension of trading hours in the 2023 festival season was an “overwhelming success”.
“South Australians, and our interstate and international visitors, want to shop for longer and later in Rundle Mall when there are festivals, sport and other major events happening in the city,” White said.
“The extra shopping time means you can come into Rundle Mall to shop and then head straight to a show or out for drinks and dinner, instead of going home and returning later in the evening.”
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A bar will offer espresso martinis and cocktails from 11am each Friday until Sunday evening each weekend.
DJs, musicians, artists and street performers will also feature along the mall throughout the month, as well as the interactive HEXADECA playground that was a hit last year.
The playground is made up of individual seats that play separate parts of an SA-produced musical score as people spin them.
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