Black Friday shoppers explore new experiential offerings at King of Prussia Mall

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Crowds descended on King of Prussia Mall on Friday, eager to get a head start on holiday shopping and experience some of the mall’s newest attractions.

“It’s Black Friday. I’ve been doing this for probably 50 years,” said Pam McAuliff, of Lansdale, who scored a deal on a Kate Spade bag and brought her granddaughter along to pick out Christmas presents. “[It] kicks off the holiday season.”

Black Friday and the weekend before Christmas are the busiest times of the year for the mall, said Todd Putt, director of marketing of KOP Mall. According to data from King of Prussia District, the mall saw more than 159,000 visits on Black Friday last year — a figure that has steadily increased since 2020.

“We’re expecting traffic and sales to be up for the holiday season,” Putt said. “And today’s given a real good precursor to that. The past couple weekends have been really busy, and today is certainly no exception.”

Along with discounts and deals, mall-goers Friday also had a chance to check out new experience-based retailers that opened in the mall this fall.

Eataly, an Italian marketplace offering products and dine-in meals as well as tastings and demonstrations, opened its first Pennsylvania location at the mall in October. Earlier this month, Netflix, the international streaming giant, launched its first immersive experience worldwide, Netflix House, at KOP Mall.

Those retailers are the latest examples of a trend toward experience-based retail offerings at KOP Mall. CAMP Philadelphia, an immersive children and family-friendly activity space, launched last year; Dick’s House of Sport and gaming venue Level99 are set to open sometime in 2027.

“It’s really just about providing people with a space where they want to come hang out,” Putt said, noting that many people have traditionally seen the mall as “a third place” to spend time.

“We’re really trying to cater to the needs of our shoppers, and that’s really what it’s all about,” he said. “And people are looking for experiences, things to do.”

On Friday, Eataly was filled with people eager to explore the location’s shopping and entertainment options.

“It was fabulous,” said Diane Alesi, a Ridley Park resident, whose daughter brought her to the mall to celebrate her birthday. “You could taste things, and it was good. Even bought a couple things.”

At Netflix House, the experience includes mini-golf, a movie theater, themed escape rooms and carnival games, a restaurant and plenty of spaces for selfies inspired by Netflix programs.

Bucks County residents Ava Serafin and Jared Sweeney were there Friday toasting a birthday, marking Sweeney’s 21st with a first drink at the Netflix House bar.

Serafin said they didn’t check out any of the paid attractions inside the multilevel store, but just walking through was enough to entice her to return.

“I thought it was so cool to see all the shows that we watch, actually in real life,” she said. “And how they went all out with the decorations and the walls, I thought it was awesome.”

Dahlia Delloso, from Newark, Delaware, made the trip to the mall mainly for Black Friday shopping, she said, but Netflix House was also “a great thing to look at.”

“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” she said. “It had all the nice pictures and real-life stuff from the movies, and ‘Stranger Things’ just came out, so it’s really nice to see that.”

Delloso said she took a few photos there Friday but plans to return.

“I’m coming back next week, for sure,” she said.