2026 Top 10 Retail Center Experiences: No. 5 — Mall of America
On the night before Black Friday 2025, temperatures were in the 20s in Bloomington, Minn., yet the atmosphere was much warmer in the parking lot of Mall of America (MOA) due to the massive encampment of people eager to be the first to cash in on the cornucopian deals awaiting them inside the nation’s largest retail venue.
More than 14,000 guests arrived within the first hour of its doors being opened. By the end of the day, more than 235,000 had coursed through MOA’s 5.6 million square feet. Visitations over the holiday weekend exceeded half-a-million — a number larger than the population of nearby Minneapolis.
“Mall of America stands apart on a national level not simply because of its size, but because of its ability to continuously redefine what a modern retail and entertainment destination can be,” said the merchandising mammoth’s chief marketing officer Jill Renslow. “It operates as a dynamic platform where experiential retail, storytelling, and innovation, come together to create moments that cannot b replicated anywhere else in America.”
[READ MORE: 2026 Top 10 Retail Center Experiences: No. 8 — Market Street - The Woodlands]
MOA serves as the nation’s top test track for new brands and international brands. Its most recent lineup of digitally-native tenants includes the Samsung Experience Store, CardVault by Tom Brady, Pop Mart and Mango. It scouts many of these tenants with a robust and expanding pop-up program, 10 of which have launched in the past year.
The Triple Five-owned mega-mall is now expanding its influence outside of its massive physical space with curated experiences such as an “ultimate staycation.” “Creators” stayed at an MOA partner hotel, took part activations such as a Lululemon sound bath, and attended last October’s Jonas Brothers concert at the Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul in a decked-out VIP suite.
The staycation generated more than 2.6 million organic impressions, featured 40 brands, and inspired nearly 500 pieces of organic content. Hosting more than 300 events annually, MOA generated more than 140 million social media impressions.
It has 170,000 Instagram followers and 313,000 TikTok followers. In 2024, MOA won 7 million TikTok likes.
