McArthurGlen Vancouver Airport Outlet Mall looks ahead to further expansion after a decade of success

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From the outset during the mall’s planning process in the early 2010s, this mall was intended to be an inviting destination not only for travellers with layovers or extra time before flights, but also for local residents seeking an accessible and big brand shopping experience at outlet prices — something that was previously only available across the Canada-U.S. border in Bellingham and near Seattle.

Since opening its first phase exactly 10 years ago today, on July 9, 2015, the mall has clearly delivered on that vision, proving to be a resounding success.

Robert Thurlow, general manager of McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Vancouver Airport, recalls that the project initially faced its share of skeptics. Having led the mall for the past decade, he has witnessed firsthand how it has surpassed expectations — starting with its opening weekend, which he notes remains the most successful launch among the London-based company’s two dozen outlet centre locations worldwide.

At the time, Daily Hive Urbanized reported that an estimated 160,000 people visited the mall during its opening weekend, including 45,000 on the first day. The bridges and main roads in and out of the airport became gridlocked due to the surreal interest, with this recurring during the peak holiday shopping periods over its history to date. Later in the inaugural year, the mall won France’s commercial property MAPIC awards for the world’s best outlet centre.

A transit-oriented mall following global airport trends

In an interview with Daily Hive Urbanized last week, Thurlow shared that nearly five million people now visit the mall each year, with about 20 per cent of visitors estimated to be tourists coming directly from the airport.

This is, of course, supported by the mall’s convenient accessibility from the airport and the rest of the region, thanks to its short walking distance from SkyTrain’s Templeton Station. With the Canada Line being free to ride on within the Sea Island stations, doubling in function as the airport’s people mover, it is just a four-minute ride between YVR Airport Station and Templeton Station, followed by an approximate five-minute walk to the mall’s entrance.

“This is a great opportunity for consumers who have long layovers, or they’re passengers who are connecting between flights and they have a lot of time. They actually come here to the centre, and it’s a great activity for them,” Thurlow told Daily Hive Urbanized.

“Certainly coming here to a beautiful outdoor shopping centre beats sitting in an airport for four hours in between flights. So I think that from an experience point of view, it’s certainly a better experience for all of us on Sea Island, not just the airport, but everybody who’s here. I also think that we’ve really become a tourism destination in Metro Vancouver. We have really been put on the tourism map.”

Thurlow says about 20 per cent of all visitors to the mall typically arrive by SkyTrain. During peak shopping periods — such as Labour Day, Black Friday, and Boxing Day — this share rises to as much as 30 per cent.

This past winter, Daily Hive Urbanized reported that ridership at Templeton Station on Boxing Day 2024 surged by 384 per cent compared to its Fall 2024 ridership average — all due to shoppers flocking to McArthurGlen mall.

The allure of great deals at the outlet centre attracted a staggering 12,500 boardings at Templeton Station on December 26, 2024, joining Metrotown Station as the only two SkyTrain stations to see a multiplier exponential jump in ridership last Boxing Day. In fact, Templeton Station nearly had the same ridership as the downtown Vancouver stations of Vancouver City Centre Station and Granville Station.

A transit-oriented mall near the airport terminal building was not part of the original vision. Vancouver Airport Authority initially considered building the outlet centre at the southeast corner of Sea Island — on a lot that still remains vacant today, immediately south of the BCIT Aerospace campus, just beyond the eastern end of the south runway. This location would have undoubtedly encouraged even greater reliance on automobiles.

The very close proximity of prominent retail and dining destinations like McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Vancouver Airport and the Changi Jewel to their respective airports is a rarity, highlighting their uniqueness among global travel hubs. Vancouver International Airport has been a leader among mid-size airports in following the latest global airport trends of prioritizing retail and dining as one measure to enhance the passenger experience and generate ancillary non-aeronautical revenues — serving to reduce some of the upward pressure on airport fees paid by passengers and airlines.

Among McArthurGlen’s portfolio of mall locations, only one other — in Malaga, Spain — is situated next to an airport. However, unlike the YVR location, the Malaga outlet mall has no business connection to the airport operator.

McArthurGlen and the airport authority have a 50/50 partnership over the YVR outlet centre. Audited financial statements show the airport authority earned nearly $4 million in combined partnership and rental income in 2024, making it a win-win for generating non-aeronautical revenues that support airport operations and improving the visitor experience. The mall’s operations also support 1,200 jobs locally.

And for Thurlow, he believes the trajectory is only upward from here — defying the broader headwinds facing brick-and-mortar retail, which have been further intensified by the lasting impacts of the pandemic, which clearly accelerated the growth of e-commerce.

But he says aside from the two-month closure at the height of the pandemic, the mall did not see much of a downturn, with customers returning in very strong numbers immediately.

“I think if you took the option away of in-person shopping, people really do like the in-person shopping experience. You do it with your family. You do it with friends. You make it a day-out event. Those kinds of things, it becomes not only just a shopping experience, but a family experience,” he continued.

Coupled with the mall’s immersive themed experience, he further notes that one of McArthurGlen at YVR’s key advantages is its value-driven, outlet discount model, which sets it apart from traditional full-price retail destinations.

“People are looking for a deal now,” he emphasized, pointing to the current economic realities that have squeezed disposable incomes.

Future expansion

The partnership’s confidence in the property led to the construction of the second phase of the mall at the southeast corner of the site.

The first phase, completed a decade ago, achieved 240,000 sq. ft. of retail space, featuring about 70 shops and food and beverage businesses, with some of the largest retailers being Polo Ralph Lauren, Nike, Gap, Under Armour, and Tommy Hilfiger. Then the second phase expansion opened on August 29, 2019, adding about 84,000 sq. ft., including Adidas, North Face, Aritzia, and a two-storey Old Navy, as well as more luxury brands like Jimmy Choo and Tory Burch.

Thurlow told Daily Hive Urbanized they are now ready to move forward with the third phase expansion at the smaller vacant parcel at the northeast corner of the property. A formal announcement will be made shortly, but he says it will add about 65,000 sq. ft. of space for between 15 and 20 units, depending on the store sizes. This will be a combination of some of the existing retailers relocating into larger spaces and the introduction of new brands to the mall.

They remain on schedule, as the original business plan for the mall always envisioned completing two expansions over five-year incremental periods.

Once open, the third phase will bring the total floor area of the mall to approximately 390,000 sq. ft.

But the third phase that fulfills the entirety of the mall’s original three-phase master plan might not necessarily be the final expansion of the outlet centre. Thurlow did not rule out the possibility of further future expansion, potentially going westward into the mall’s existing surface vehicle parking lot, with some of the parking capacity replaced by a multi-level parkade, for example.

“There are always opportunities — whether that means expanding at some point many years down the road, maybe into the parking lot and then building a multi-story parking deck to add more parking. There are lots of different ways we could look at it,” said Thurlow.

Over the coming months, prior to the opening of phase three, customers can expect some new businesses to open, including Burberry, Max Mara, and Kinton Ramen.

Currently, running through July 13, 2025, McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Vancouver Airport is hosting its 10th anniversary celebrations, offering additional discounts in the stores, gifts with purchase, and special live music and other performances. There are also  giveaways, including a Helijet and Victoria overnight stay package, and special edition eats at the Lee’s Donuts outpost and The Praguery food truck parked at the mall’s entrance.

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