While plenty of chains are downsizing and online shopping keeps swallowing up errands, the King of Prussia Mall in Montgomery County is still packed. A steady stream of new attractions and big redevelopment plans has turned the massive complex into something closer to a mini vacation than a quick stop for jeans. Locals are not just swinging through for a single purchase anymore, they are settling in for hours.
“We see about millions of visitors every year,” assistant general manager Todd Putt told CBS Philadelphia. Putt credits constant reinvestment and a shifting tenant mix for keeping the place relevant, and shoppers interviewed by the station backed that up, saying the wide mix of brands and experiences keeps them coming back.
Owner Simon Property Group’s official mall page counts roughly 450 shops and dozens of full-service restaurants and pitches the complex as one of North America’s premier shopping destinations (Simon). The footprint has been growing for decades, starting with The Plaza in 1963, then The Court in 1981, and finally the major connector that physically joined the two in 2016, according to the mall’s compiled history (Wikipedia). Those expansions, layered with new tenants, have pushed King of Prussia away from the old-school department store template and toward something more like an all-purpose entertainment hub.
What Is Drawing Crowds Now
One of the flashiest recent arrivals is Netflix House Philadelphia, which opened at King of Prussia in November 2025. The permanent fan destination spans more than 100,000 square feet of immersive, show-themed attractions, according to a company press release (Netflix). It is built to pull in visitors who are just as interested in living inside their favorite series as they are in swiping a credit card.
Not long before that, Eataly, the sprawling Italian marketplace and restaurant concept, opened its doors in October 2025. Local coverage reports that Eataly and Netflix House together gave the mall a notable lift in holiday foot traffic and sales (Philadelphia Inquirer). Smaller experiential spots have followed, including the Philly outpost of the Sloomoo Institute, giving visitors more reasons to stretch a quick stop into an all-afternoon outing.
Redeveloping The Former JCPenney
One of the mall’s biggest dead zones, the long-vacant JCPenney anchor, is also getting a second act. Simon has committed to loading the space with experience-focused tenants. Level99, an interactive gaming and dining concept, is slated for the ground floor, while a DICK'S House of Sport will take over the upper levels, according to local coverage (Bisnow).
The plan, as reported by Bisnow, chops the roughly 104,000-square-foot former department store into a roughly 46,000-square-foot home for Level99 plus additional floors reserved for DICK'S House of Sport, with the combined project expected to open in 2027. In other words, where there used to be racks of sweaters, there will be people climbing, competing and grabbing a bite between rounds.
Why Owners Are Doubling Down
Local planners say the gamble on experiences is not just a hunch. The King of Prussia District’s 2026 report highlights record visitation, a retail vacancy rate hovering near 2.3 percent, and more than 20 million shopping trips in 2025 (King of Prussia District). With flagship openings, low vacancy and steady crowds, property owners have plenty of justification to keep pouring money into concepts that make people stay longer and spend more while they are there.
Mall officials say the goal now is to blend major brands, curated luxury and one-off experiences instead of leaning entirely on traditional anchors. If that strategy holds, King of Prussia could remain not just one of the country’s largest malls, but one of its most resilient retail experiments, a suburban reminder that brick and mortar is not finished yet.
