You might be wondering why I'm giving such a dead mall such a high rating! The reason is simply because I'm obsessed with malls in general, and I set out to go to as many as I can (especially dead ones). This mall is very beautiful and I absolutely love the architecture. I love to think about how this mall used to be, and if you look at the early reviews, you can get a glimpse of how different it was. Nowadays, the mall is devoid of any stores. Literally. There's like only one store. It's kind of sad. If you are someone like me who enjoys exploring stuff like this, you will love it! Try to get to it now, as I can't see it staying open for much longer. If you're a normal person who is just trying to go shopping, go somewhere else. There isn't any shopping to be done here. read more

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Turn the Exton Mall into a Reading Terminal, Perfect layout for it, and this area keeps growing so it wouldn't lack customers. And the product is better bought in person instead of online. read more

Exton Square Mall is a beautiful but dead mall. It's a complicated two floor structure with four anchors, of which the former Sears and top floor of the former JCPenney's is vacant. Existing anchors include Boscov's, Macy's, and Round1. Parking is not an issue with two large garages and surface spaces. Interior of the mall is well designed and unique. Unfortunately, the interior store wise is largely vacant. There are few stores left, with most being on the upper level near the food court. Exton is essentially ineffective as a shopping mall. Food court has clearly lost several tenants in the last few years, but is extremely nice and has its own entrance. Medical facilities occupy significant space on the lower level between the Macy's and Round1. Will this be a mall in five years? I doubt it, but how it gets redeveloped is the question. Exton's complex structure would make it challenging. The area around the mall is also heavily built up with the options most people are looking for today, including Burlington, Chipotle, Kohl's, Target, and Walmart. So, what would this become? I don't know, but it's no longer effective as a shopping mall. read more

The mall was pretty much dead. A few nice shops but very sporadic, staff was very nice. Shopping was not very great at the mall othersthan a White House, Black market and LensCrafters. food at the mall was also horrible only sprouting one Chinese food parlor in the food court. nice atmosphere very 90s mall. read more

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This mall summed up in one word: depressing. Probably 75% of the storefronts are empty, and a lot of the left over businesses are things like professional and medical offices. The set up of the mall is kind of weird too (yes, it is in fact a square but is somehow still a little disorienting), and I can see why people have largely abandoned it. Yet another dead and decaying mall in America, I can't see this place ever getting revitalized to what it must have once been. read more

Still no response to the first review I posted, so I thought I would write a better one. Here you go! I had a bad encounter with security at this mall just because I was making a video documentary. I don't understand why they cared, this mall is as dead as a doornail. It's a wonder why it has not yet been listed on deadmalls.com. But that is beside the point. What kind of world do we live in where First Amendment Rights don't mean anything anymore? It's just plain ridiculous. I run a YouTube channel and I enjoy filming trains and elevators, and in fact when I came here back in March 2023, I was making a video of the elevator in Macy's. It is a vintage elevator from 1972, completely original (almost). The manager of the Macy's here is very kindhearted and fully understands me for what I do; I wish I could say the same thing about mall management. When I logged a complaint with the general manager, she gave me the same invalid excuse that the security guard did; that the building is private property and photography and videography are not allowed without consent from management. That's ridiculous; I shouldn't need permission. In a public building, anything is fair game as far as taking pictures; photography is not a crime. The fact that Americans cannot respect each other's First Amendment Rights infuriates me to no avail. To sum it up, don't ever go here unless you are here to shop at the Macy's or go bowling at Round One Entertainment. read more

Depressing! The mall has practically no stores, and the ones it has, have bottom-of-the-barrel junk. Even the food court is depleted---only 3 food places. Not even coffee in any of them! Forget about people watching. There are no people either read more

I personally don't understand why malls are going away, but this one is apparently closing sometime this fall. My daughter and I were recently in the area for an appointment and stopped in to have lunch at the food court. The Japanese teriyaki place has been our favorite for years and we were sad that it would be our last time eating there. And also sad that it would be our last time shopping there as well. It's a shame - it really used to be such a nice mall :( read more

This was once a great mall but as most malls it is starting to lag. The food court is still good but not many customers in the mall proper. The anchor stores are lacking and thus there is a hollow feel through out the mall it self. King of Prussia is a much better option. read more

So sad - this mall is dead. Went yesterday with two watches in my purse I wanted to get batteries replaced in. First I tried Macy's - couldn't find any employees even though I stood near the watch kiosk for 10 minutes. Don't want my money? Okay. Went into the main mall and found a watch stand that had a sign that explicitly offered changed batteries. Stood there for another ten minutes without any employee appearing. Guess they were out wandering around even though the kiosk was def "open." So many empty store fronts. The ones that are still open are the signs of a dying mall - cheap as seen on TV stuff. read more

I'm with Mike G. on this one. This is definitely the mall that America forgot, and with good reason. Why bother when you have the King of Prussia plaza right down the road! I came here with my friend last Thursday, wondering if maybe my memories of this mall had been too harsh, but they were definitely spot on! Macy's is in the very center and the rest of the mall is built around it. We walked around the whole mall and only found a handful of stores to even go into, but we both left empty handed. It definitely is clean, and parking was abundant, but its clear as day to understand why. No one really comes here! Thanks but I'll stick to KOP. read more

Maybe it's because I haven't been in for a while but it feels like they've picked up a few more stores. It's still pretty dead for a Mall of it's size, but it's got some cool shops. The biggest draw is the Round 1 but it has the standard stores you would expect like Bath and Body, Yankee Candle, a variety of clothing stores, etc. Gertrude's is a little small but it has a decent selection of chocolates and they've been wonderful so far. If you're in the area it's worth stopping in, if nothing else the fact that it's not so busy is a good enough reason to hang out there right now anyway. read more

I grew up shopping at this mall and it's a shame to see it struggle like this. I even worked at one of the retail chains inside the mall and I remember it being dead all the time. Since I've been gone and going back just yesterday, Charlotte Russe and Victoria's Secret are both gone along with H&M. I also heard Banana Republic is on it's way out. It was also just announced that Sears is leaving. It's just sad to see the mall slowly start to go. It is nice to be able to run into a store and grab something because it is a pain to trek all the way out to King of Prussia and deal with the crowds there. But the way things are going I'm not sure how much longer this mall will last. If things don't turn around I'd be shocked if it will be here in 5 years. read more

This mall is owned by the same company that owns Plymouth Meeting Mall, and like that one, it's showing some signs of the retail apocalypse. Granted, I haven't walked through the whole thing, but just around where Macy's is, there are a lot of vacant store spaces. It doesn't look as old as others I've seen online and such, but there's not much foot traffic. Plymouth is starting to get better with some of their recent additions, and maybe this one can start doing that too. read more

the mall was dead, me and family said let's go here it closer I said ok but when I went there they had no stores I like or my family so we had to go to king of Prussia mall read more

This mall has nothing left in it. It's quite shocking . A Yankee Candle and Bath and Body were only 2 stores open on one whole side. Most stores are shuttered. Hot Topic looks like it's on the brink of closure as there is barely any merchandise. Really a depressing atmosphere. Used to be a nice mall. Only store worthwhile in my opinion is Boscovs and Round One. I can't imagine this place will hang on much longer. read more

The mall is dead... each hall has one or two stores with two department stores and round1... oh and a great hospital built into the mall... yes in the mall. read more

For much of my life I lived almost exactly half way between KOP and Exton. I'd say 70% of the time I chose the Exton Mall over KOP. Why you ask? Well, while it does not have as many stores, it does have the RIGHT stores. I do not need Cartier, Bose, or Burberry, I need a food court and a couple places to buy clothes that do not have the words Abercrombie and Fitch plastered on them. They have a vast array of department stores: Strawbridges, Sears, Boscov's and JC Penny with none of the headaches of KOP. In addition, there are about 4 strip malls within a quarter mile of the mall itself, so if you cant find what you're looking for, you have countless options around you. PS- Do not try to play night football under the lights in the Sears parking garage. It annoys the "Rent-A-Cop" that patrols it. read more

No, it's not as big or awesome as KoP mall. But then again, you won't spend hours walking from one end to the next just to visit a few stores that happen to be inconveniently placed for your particular shopping visit. Comparing a local mall to one of the biggest malls in America and saying it falls short is just not very helpful. It has a reasonably good selection of stores plus the few big names like Macy's, Boscov's, JC Penney, Sears surrounding. After the big makeover years ago the mall itself definitely looks a lot nicer and cleaner. The food court has expanded. The large windows in the ceiling let natural light in during the day and lend a nice atmosphere. Yes, there are birds in the food court, but they're cute. If you're freaked out that a few songbirds are around your food, please never go on a picnic. There are a few things that make me sad about Exton, like the disappearance of the arcade and Allied Hobbies, but overall it's a nice place to go when you need to hit a few clothing stores or the bigger stores all in one place. Or Gamestop (there is one on each level since EB was bought!). I've never had any of the staff be rude to me. There might be some stocking issues, but that's because they're small mall stores and not giant outlets that have every size of every item. I also try to go on weeknights when the mall isn't nearly as crowded as the weekends, so I've never had crowding problems either. Honestly, I don't see how a lot of the criticisms written by my fellow reviewers even apply to Exton Square Mall. Sorry! It's a good local mall, but if you want a larger selection of stores, go to KoP. read more

Exton Mall, I've almost grown up there - my mom used to take me when I was young. They had these giant colorful animals for kids to climb on, which was pretty exciting out here in Chester County in the late 70's. I fondly recall pushing my sister down off the side off the animals, cuz she was littler than me and couldn't get a good grip on 'em. (slightly sinister laugh) The whole mall used to be lined in dark brown tiles, but since the redo, it's much brighter and a nicer place to be. My only desire is to have a Nordstrom(or something else higher end) there - why oh why Sears and Penney's??!! The Macy's is pretty good, but it didn't change much when they took over the original Strawbridges, in my opinion. The same "oh so friendly" staff still works there, so watch out if you are looking for good customer service, cuz it ain't happening here. I'd also like to see one additional higher end maternity place - that Motherhood just isn't quite cuttin' it when it comes to fashion(at least from this decade). I ran outta there with one pair of jeans and an organic cotton T, never to return. read more

I can't believe I'm reviewing a mall but here goes. If you are a true "mall person" and you've been to KOP mall, you won't like Exton Mall. It's fine if you live locally but it's not a destination mall. Boscovs, JC Penney and Macy's are the 3 anchor stores. Food Court is actually prettey decent with open air design. The one good thing about the mall is that it's right next to the Chester County Library and within a five minute drive, you there are many other smaller shopping centers. Note: Miss the "Time-Out" arcade from the 70's and child maze. read more

Only visit this mall if you are close and going to a specific store. The Good: This mall has "Round 1," a place for games, bowling, and billiards. It's also has Macy's, Sears, and Boscov's. The Bad: I have never seen so many empty stores within a mall before. It's sad. The Taco Bell in the food court is also closed. The Ugly: Is it just me or did they turn he air conditioning off? It is not a pleasant temperature for shopping in the few stores that are there. There already other places to go for shopping. Maybe it will get better closer to Christmas. read more

I was very impressed with this mall. It was super clean, had plenty of parking (including parking garages), and a huge assortment of stores. Visiting PA from MA, I wanted to see something different and this mall definitely offered a different amount of food places and stores. My two favorite places had to be Boscov's (be prepared to be blown away in this store- it is awesome) and Saxby's Coffee (sooo many flavors, my friend and I went back twice!). The mall is nicely maintained. Super clean with plenty of clean restrooms and couches. Outside, there are banks and a post office (plus a carnival when we went). I didn't see many groups of teens causing trouble nor did I ever feel crowded. And better yet, there were no kiosks where people were hassling me to try a product or switch my cellphone. read more

At the Exton Square Mall, there is always a 50/50 percent chance that you'll. . . A.)- Leave unsatisfied and with few items. B.)- Find some things you want but become annoyed with the staff or store conditions. C.)- Exit angry and without anything due to low quality, staff issues, rudeness, or failing to locate anything worth purchasing. All three of these things have occured when I have shopped at the Exton Square mall. Often I leave because it's jam-packed with too many patrons, and there is barely any room to walk without someone rudely bumping into you and not bothering to say "Excuse me" or even a "sorry". The staff is often rude and uniterested in their work, and unwilling to help. Compared to King of Prussia, the ESM is terrible. read more

This place isn't as great as it used to be. The stores are too high dollar. There are more teenagers and teens hanging out without adult supervision. More yuppies than norm, and boy, can they be rude. read more

Exton Square Mall - Ewww.... - Shopping Centers Near Me - Exton, Pennsylvania

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This place is a wonderful choice to avoid the KOP mall. Much more low key. It's far from the KOP mall, but worth it. Great food options all around the mall- not only just in it. I think it is a much more enjoyable shopping experience if you have to go to a mall. The layout takes some getting used to- but I am sure if you were there often enough you would learn it in no time. There is a sushi place in the food court with AWESOME rolls and bubble tea. I suggest you check them out, the name escapes me right now but if and when I think of it I will write a review just for them. It does seem to be an older mall- but what is wrong with that? For me- I could care less. It's fine by me to avoid the headache of some other malls. EDITED TO ADD NOTE: Sushi place in food court is called Lasaka. Please see my review on that. read more

120916 First visit to Exton Mall and was rather disappointed. It was like a ghost town. Very few shoppers and many of the store fronts were signs that said "space available". Is the mall dying but just clinging to life by the anchor stores? read more

Worked here for about a year when I lived in PA. I found this mall to be mildly ghetto. Maybe my judgement is clouded by the fact that I worked at Strawbridge's (now Macy's) and the store was barely a step above Kmart (also such a bad place to work I still fondly refer to it as "Burning Bridges"). A main complaint about the mall is that the layout is confusing. Even after working there for several months I still had to consult the directory if I wanted to leave my store. Also, at the time (about 5 years ago) there were alot of vacancies in the mall. Maybe this has changed, but with the current state of things, I doubt it. That being said, there was a good variety of stores, from clothing to music and electronics to a hair salon and Trade Secret to Victoria's Secret. The food court is really big and there is lots of parking. One thing I always found strange: there are cute little birds that live in the mall. Not so bad when they are appropriately perched in the trees, but kinda weird when they got into the store and panicked, and kinda gross when they were in the food court. read more

Despite Round 1 and the nearby Whole Foods, this is a mall in decline. Some of the food court places are closing--that's where most of the traffic lies. Big frustration: horrible WiFi. It never connects in the food court because they have the router in the lounge area on the other side of the mall--and almost nobody ever goes there. Their remaining anchor stores won't save them. Sears could be dead in a year and Boscov's isn't far behind. It's gotta keep up with the times. read more

This is a 2 star mall unless say your visiting from out of town and you don't know any better(cough Gloucester, MA reviewer ;) But if you live in the area you obviously have tons of options for mall shopping. You have the biggest mall on the East Coast just a short drive away and numerous malls in the Philly area. So how does Exton Mall stack up? Not so good. If you're used to the KOP mall this mall is going to seem like joke.Even something like the Willow Grove mall is much better. Its just boring there, its a ghost town with stripped down stores. Walking into the Sears feels like I've been transported back 20 years+. The shopping options at this mall are pretty bad and I've left disappointed almost every time. Its almost as if every store is a striped down version. The Macy's there is god awful. I mean it says Macy's on the sign but when I walk in its a ghost town and the clothing department doesn't have literally half the merchandise that you would see at KOP or say Willow Grove. I will give the mall credit for 2 things only(Parking and being relatively clean). Thats it. read more

This mall is trash . My boyfriend and I went saturday and it's dead . So many stores are closed and I'm confused how they even stay open smh It gave me weird vibes so me and my guy got outta there lol read more

This mall is dead and it's a Saturday, the stores are empty and some closed. Didn't shop, just walked around

Sad. 75% of stores closed down. Misleading signage for discounts that are not real. Teenaged salespeople with no customer service skills. Best I can say is this is a good place for wintertime mall walkers. read more

I'm not sure who came up with the design for this mall, but whoever did decided to put Macy's right in the middle of it and built around it. If you're not careful, you can get confused going in and out of the different Macy's entrances... Anyway, the mall certainly isn't as big as KOP, but they have all the necessities you probably need and it's definitely less crowded. read more

Not a terrible mall, but it could be improved. Macy's is probably my favorite shop at this mall and this particular Macy's is pretty good with regard to selection and service. The mall has a food court that includes a Nestle Toll House shop -- yum! This mall is a bit confusing to walk around because of the layout, but I'm figuring it out. Sorta. Mall is conveniently located and easy to get to from area highways. Plenty of other shopping in the area as well. read more

Since their rebuild and addition of more pricey stores, the Exton Square Mall has gone down hill. Most of the more upscale stores service persons won't even come up to assist you unless you're holding a wad of cash in your hand. And the food court? Don't get me started about some of these spots. The only one that seems reasonably priced is Chick fil a and Taco Bell. Every other place has meals starting nearly at $ 7 and $ 8 a plate. The worst part are the teenagers and kids that get dropped off at the mall without any sort of adult supervision. They cause trouble, harass the elderly and plus sized, and are a problem for the other people who actually spend money there. read more

Even though im all man, ive always enjoyed shopping malls. Not so much the shopping and buying part of it, but the whole atmosphere tickles me. First of all, us guys like one-stop places that we can pick everything up in one sweep, including a breif pause to stuff our faces. Next, one of my fav things to do is people watch. Ive come up with some great games: "How Long Till The Divorce?", " Which of Those Kids Have Different Daddys?" " Which of Those Teens will be in Prison/ Rehab?". I also like to play, Find the "Famous" , where I compare regular simps to their famous lookalikes. And all of this under 1 roof! I like the Exton Square Mall. It falls somewhere between the pretentious KOP and the yee haw Granite Run Mall. Its always strikingly clean and parking is never an issue. On the odd chance you dont find what you want here, its located next to just about every retail store ever created. The food court has all of the necessaries, pizza, chinese, burger joint, mexican, sandwiches, coffee and icecream. I originally came on here to review the TollHouse Cookie place in the foodcourt, but didnt feel like being the first to review. Man was that good! I got a Cookie sandwich, where you pick 2 cookies, pick your icecream flavor and get a massive ( one of the few times where the actual thing was BIGGER than the picture) treat for only about 4 bucks. I got the choc chip cookie with butterfinger crunch icecream and WOW I was in heaven. Diebetes tapped me on the shoulder but I brushed it away, "Not now, awful disease, take my foot later, Im eating here!" An escalator was broken and just became "steps" and I wondered how many other things are fully functional while still being broken. Someday, they will build the perfect mall. Moving hallways like the airport so i wont have to walk. Live Victorias Secret models prowling the store windows. TVs showing movies and sporting events no matter where you walk (Suncoast usually frowns on me bringing a lounge chair and popcorn into their store). And a lazyboy, centrally located where I can do all the people watching that my eyes can take. Until then though, Exton Square is just fine. read more

I don't know what happened??!? I visited this mall this past Thursday and oh my! What used to be a thriving mall has really been deflated. I've frequented this mall many times since the 1990's and it's always been a major shopping hub, even in the late 90's when it underwent a major renovation project to give the mall and businesses a more modern look and feel. However, on Thursday I felt that my parents and I were walking in a ghost town, most of the shops were closed or going out of business. Of the few open stores, mainly were no name stores. They do have Gap, H&M, but most of the storefronts are being rented by unlikely businesses like medical offices and the Chester County Chamber of Commerce... So weird. read more

For a few years I went to a school located near this mall...well not exactly I was midway here and Granite Run Mall I think. I totally would have driven here than there (Granite Run Mall is boring). I like the finer malls mainly because you find more stores and have access to more quality items and choices are always a plus. This is not the best mall in the area but it is a very nice mall. This mall was my hangout and I enjoyed studying here either in foodcourts or lounging around or walking the mall. It is a really peaceful mall in my opinion at least the multiple times Ive been there. I honestly like quieter malls because I prefer no distraction retail therapy. If I lived closer Id be back more often. I found really cool sales in some of their department stores at the end of seasons. Im a pretty good shopper so I usually find when the good stuff goes on sale. :) I love that there is a library right in the mall complex...really exciting...get my shopping done and then go relax in the library. Lol. Im not a master of this mall so Im ready to come back to explore any time since im not bored of it yet! It is just quite a drive for me...since I dont live nearby anymore. 5 stars for the location. It is a very convenient shopping area. I love Indian food so another perk at this mall is...outside in another shopping strip is a cool Indian restaurant that also sells dosa and Indian desserts. Just a thumbs up for anyone else who loves Indian food while they are here. Honestly I think I should just move to Exton. I love this area...and the shopping!!! :P Because there are just so many stores inside and ouutside of this mall it makes shopping really convenient. Even as ritzy of an area it is...I always find excellent bargains everywhere I go when Im here! Just lucky? Maybe. :) Oh did I forget to mention Westchester is right nearby? So is King of Prussia (KOP is the bigger mall than Exton)...but a little drive. And Philadelphia Premiere Shopping Outlet in Limerick somewhere...LOL. Only for shoppers who are interested... read more

Love it -- precisely because it's NOT KOP. KOP is crowded, annoying to park, too much traffic, and way overpriced. Yeah, if you're looking for high-end stores, Exton isn't for you, but for a local, it's perfect. I love that it's so quiet, safe, and clean. Some stores have closed that I used to frequent, but that's because their corporate structure changed (i.e., closing retail stores and just staying online). This has to do with internet shopping and not the mall itself -- that's happening everywhere. My kids love the play area, which is clean and never too crowded. The Macy's is great, the food court has some awesome options, and there are plenty of kids' stores to keep a mom happy. read more