Great outlet shopping in PA…Franklin Mills Mall
Written: Nov 18 '04 (Updated Nov 18 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: variety of stores, some stores really have outlet prices
Cons: very large mall, some stores aren’t outlet priced
The Bottom Line: A good outlet mall that is a tad on the large side.
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| kld718's Full Review: Franklin Mills |
I love to shop. I love clothes and shoes so I know where all of the malls are. I started shopping at the Franklin Mills Mall right after I moved to the Philly area. It’s a big mall with a wide variety of stores available…what’s not to love? For a shopper like me, it was heaven. It also reminded me of home because it is a part of the Mills malls that are spread throughout the United States. My mother and I always shopped at the Sawgrass Mills Mall when I lived at home.
Not to mention that it was very convenient for me to get to. The Franklin Mills Mall is located right near U.S. 1 (Roosevelt Blvd.), which is the main street I used to live off of. It’s also very convenient to the Turnpike and I-95. Granted, I would rather have gone to shop in downtown Philly most days, it was just more convenient for me to head to this mall and avoid the congestion of downtown.
The Franklin Mills Mall is divided up into four neighborhoods: red, blue, yellow, and green. There are six anchors to this mall, which shows how large this mall actually is because most malls only have four anchor stores.
Red Neighborhood:
Aerosole Shoes, Banana Republic Factory Store, Bath & Body Works, Bavarian Soft Pretzels, Bombay Company Outlet, Carlene’s Research, Casual Corner Annex, China Buddha Express, Cingular Wireless, Earrings World, ESPN XGames Skatepark, Finish Line, Gap Outlet, Great Wraps, Group USA, H&R Block, JcPenney Outlet Store, Jillian’s Entertainment, Kasper A.S.L. Outlet, KB Toy Outlet, Kelly’s Cajun, Liz Claiborne Outlet, Lovely Perfumes, Lu Lu, Modern Expressions Furniture, Nestle Toll House Café, Perry Ellis, Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store, Popeye’s, Sam Ash Music, Samsonite, Sbarro Express, Scrubs and Beyond, The Picture People, Vitamin World, Zales The Diamond Store Outlet
Blue Neighborhood:
Ann Taylor Factory Store, Banister Shoes, BCBG, Bebe, Benetton Outlet, Brooks Brothers Factory Outlet, Burlington Coat Factory, Cosmetics Company Store, Eddie Bauer Outlet Store, Greg Norman Collection, H & M, Kenneth Cole, Last Call Neiman Marcus, LVLX, Maidenform Outlet, Motherhood Maternity, Nautica Clearance Center, Nine West Outlet, Perfumania, Platinum, Polo Jeans Company Store, Radio Shack, Reebok/Rockport Factory Store, Ruby Tuesday, Saks Fifth Avenue Outlet, Select Comfort, Skechers USA, Spencer Gifts, Tommy Hilfiger, Tropik Sun Fruit & Nut, Ultra Diamond Outlet, United Colors of Benetton
Yellow Neighborhood:
Aeropostale, Aldo For Less, Athlete’s Foot Outlet, Beartown USA/Puppytown USA, Bed Bath & Beyond, Candy World, Carter’s for Kids, Casual Male Big & Tall Outlet, Charlote Russe, Children’s Place Outlet, City Blue, Claire’s Etc., Dairy Queen, D.E.M.O., Dress Barn Outlet, Factory Shoes, Foot Locker Outlet, Gloria Jean’s Gourmet Coffee, Guess Company Store, Just Sports USA, L’eggs/Hanes/Bali/Playtex, Limited Too, Lindt Chocolates, Magic Photo, Marshalls Megastore, Newsstand of Franklin Mills, Off Broadway Shoes, Orange Julius, OshKosh B’Gosh, Royal Jewelers, Sears Appliance Outlet, Sprint PCS, Sunglass Hut, The Flag Shop, The Nailery, Underground Station, Urban Planet, Watches Galore, Wilsons Leather Outlet, Wireless Zone
Green Neighborhood:
4 Seasons Outerwear, A Dollar Outlet, Against All Odds, AMC Cinema, Arthur Treachers, Auntie Anne’s, Beauty Express, Boscov’s, Bostonian/Clarke’s Shoe Outlet, Charlie A’s Chicken, Charlie A’s Steaks, Cold Stone Creamery, Deli Delicious, EB Outlet, Elegance, Executive Cellular, FYE For Your Entertainment, G&G Shops, G. Jewelers, Games Workshop, GNC, Hollywood Peepers, House of Perfumes & Beauty Outlet, Hunnie’s Cinamon’s, J5 Sportswear, Jean Outlet, KB Toyworks, Le Nails, Levi’s/Dockers Outlet, Lids For Less, Johnny Rockets, Lids For Less, Lotus Express, Mastercuts, McDonalds, Modell’s Sporting Goods, NoName Outlet, Old Navy Outlet, Payless ShoeSource, Olympia Sports, Perfume Romance, Ritz Camera One Hour Photo, Rue 21, Sbarro, Smokers Choice, Subway, Timeout, United Check Cashing
The Franklin Mills Mall has a variety of restaurants that I have also included above. With two food courts, Cafe Freedom and Cafe Court, you are almost guaranteed to find something that you’ll enjoy. These food courts do not include the other restaurants that are located around the mall (Jillian’s, Johnny Rockets, Ruby Tuesday). The mall also has fast food restaurants located around the outside perimeter of the mall (Taco Bell and Burger King just to name a few). There is also several larger stores located outside of the mall (Wal-Mart, Raymour & Flanagan, Toys R’ Us) and a whole other small plaza with a few other stores. This place is huge!
There are automated teller machines located throughout the mall for your convenience if you find yourself low on cash and small kary karts (extra charge) if you have bought too much to handle. There is also a shuttle service near the customer service booth and the Septa public transportation system (tokens for sale at United Check Cashing) along the outside of the mall. As with most malls, there is a small customer service booth in the grand court near the aqua entrance. You can purchase gift cards, obtain coupon books, and pick up a wheelchair here if needed. Franklin Mills Mall also features a small US Post Office that can be very convenient if you need any packages sent right away.
As you can tell by the amount and variety of stores, you can almost find anything you desire in this mall. But definitely be prepared for a long walk from one end to another. I think there were a few times when I walked the whole mall just because I really didn’t have anything in mind to buy but just wanted to browse. Most of the time, I knew what stores I wanted to go to and just parked at the nearest entrance. If my desired stores were at opposites ends of the mall and I was in a hurry, or feeling particularly lazy that day, I would move my car from one end to the other. That’s really the only bad thing about the mall. If I bought too much at one end, I would deliver my bags to the car and just move the car to the other end to finish shopping.
I can really understand why this mall is touted as a tourist destination. Walking through, you can definitely see a wide variety of people. The mall is set up almost exactly like the Sawgrass Mills Mall here in Florida. It’s definitely a more modern looking mall, but it’s not a fancy one. You can find other nearby malls that would be more pleasing to the senses. But when I am shopping, I could hardly care about these things, as long as the place isn’t a dump.
Overall, my shopping experience here has always been good and I have never had a problem at any hour of the day. Mall security is always in abundance here. I don’t think I have ever gone into the mall without seeing someone driving around outside catching those that speed through the parking lot or uniformed guards scattered throughout the mall. I enjoy the fact that there are a wide variety of stores here and I don’t have to travel around town to do my shopping, especially with the crazy traffic. Unfortunately, I’ll really miss this mall. But now that I am again 10 minutes away from the Sawgrass Mills Mall, I’ll have to make do with it.
If you don’t mind the walking, this mall is one to hit if you are in town. While all the stores may not offer spectacular buys, you are almost guaranteed to find everything you need here.
Franklin Mills Mall is located at:
1455 Franklin Mills Circle
Philadelphia, PA. 19154
www.franklinmills.com
Hours of operation:
Monday-Saturday = 10-9:30pm
Sunday = 11-7pm
* Holiday hours do vary.
~ Happy Shopping!
Kim
Another Mills Mall:
Sawgrass Mills Mall
Another Pennsylvania Mall:
Roosevelt Mall
Recommended:
Yes
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