Danielle Carroll, left, and Cody Wade walk past stores Monday at the Market Street Shops of Dalton. Carroll and Wade came to the shopping area so Carroll could find new sunglasses.
Staff Photo by Allison Carter/Chattanooga Times Free PressNEW TENANTS* Harley-Davidson* Dollar Tree* Tuesday Morning* Tony’s Italian Restaurant and Pizza* Candy Land Treats
DALTON, Ga. – When Tom French came onboard at what was Dalton Outlet Shops, business was abysmal.
The occupancy rate had fallen to 50 percent after the loss of the shopping center’s anchor tenant, WestPoint Stevens. The parking lot never was full.
Other outlet malls in Calhoun, Ga., sucked in Atlanta customers, and Chattanoogans to the north made do with the shopping centers there.
These factors, combined with the major 2009 recession and a shrinking local market, left the outlet mall in bad shape.