Johnston & Murphy Wants to Attract Younger Consumers With Revamped Mall Stores

The brand has remodeled its locations at The Mall at Short Hills in Short Hills, N.J. and Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi, Mich.

Johnston & Murphy is moving full steam ahead on its plans to attract new consumers, this time by unveiling two newly redesigned stores.

According to the Genesco-owned footwear brand, it has revamped its locations at The Mall at Short Hills in Short Hills, N.J. and Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi, Mich.

“This is an exciting time for Johnston & Murphy,” Danny Ewoldsen, president of Johnston & Murphy, said in a statement. “Our sales continue to be on a strong growth trajectory, and we are seeing encouraging trends in retail.”

Ewoldsen also credited the resurgence in American malls with increased foot-traffic and occupancy rates rising as another reason for the company’s investment in the Short Hills and Twelve Oaks locations.

“Malls are bouncing back after the downturn brought on by the pandemic and attracting a younger shopper looking for an engaging retail experience and instant gratification,” the executive added. “It was these data points that helped inform our strategic decision to invest in the redesign of these two premier mall locations.”

The newly reopened 2,000-sq.-ft. Short Hills store and the 1,343-sq.-ft. Twelve Oaks shop feature sleek walnut slats and clean white tiles on the store front, as well as oak floors, updated lighting and bright finishes on the interior.

Each store houses a broad assortment of men’s footwear, apparel, outerwear, small leather goods and bags as well as the new spring line of casual athletic footwear, the company added.

Johnston & Murphy noted that it currently operates 66 retail stores, 62 factory outlets and 24 airport locations for a total of 152 stores nationwide. The company added in a statement on Tuesday that it “remains committed” to its retail expansion and redesign goals.

More updates are planned for store locations in Tysons Corner in Virginia and Scottsdale in Arizona as well as three airport stores in Miami, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh later this year. Plus, a new store at Chicago Midway will open this fall followed by the relocation of the Charlotte airport store to a larger space.

This news comes as Genesco works to widen Johnston & Murphy’s consumer base by targeting younger consumers. This can be seen in the brand’s new “Not Your Dad’s Shoe Company” campaign that was released in April. The idea of the spot was to highlight the brand’s transition into more casual, hybrid dress product that might appeal to younger consumers.

In an interview in April, Ewoldsen told FN that the brand has been moving in a more casual direction for some time now, but that the pandemic really kickstarted its turnaround. “The idea of this campaign is to give Johnston and Murphy a stronger brand voice with a stronger top of the funnel approach around acquiring new customers into our brand,” he said.

In May, Genesco Inc. reaffirmed its outlook for fiscal year 2025 after it reported sales and earnings results that beat its expectations for the first quarter.

“We are attracting younger customers into the brand,” Genesco president, chief executive officer and board chair Mimi Vaughn said of Johnston & Murphy in a call with analysts in May. “We’re going to reach a wider audience to tell J&M’s story and educate the consumer and appeal to a younger cohort at the same time that we are retaining the customers that we’ve been able to traditionally serve.”