Several empty stores and low foot traffic present a monumental challenge for the Downtown Chatham Centre – and similar malls across Canada.

But it’s a challenge Regina Stockus, the centre’s new manager of leasing and special events, is tackling by using her years of experience in the hospitality, tourism and marketing industry.

“People have to understand the mall industry is basically … going through a huge paradigm shift,” Stockus told The Chatham Daily News.

She said malls that are surviving are no longer just for shopping. They have endured by becoming a community centre that provides people with an experience.

The goal is to transform the centre into a hub for downtown Chatham, which includes finding ways to attract people to the building that occupies a city block.

Noting foot traffic is key to retail success in a mall, Stockus said her immediate priority “is creating events that will draw people.”

The effort is already underway through the creation of The Reading Room, a new community space for local residents to visit and socialize, she said.

Other plans include organizing a diverse slate of special events, including line dancing, fashion shows, and arts and culture exhibits.

Stockus said efforts are even being made to have a sailboat and airplane on display in the mall.

There is no choice but to try to reinvent the Downtown Chatham Centre, she said.

“We have to take a really good look at the reality that the retail business, as it was, is no longer (viable). It needs to be something more.”

But there is still good news for brick-and-mortar shops, despite the growing popularity of online shopping.

According to the Retail Council of Canada, only 30 per cent of shopping nationwide is online while 70 per cent remains people going to actual shops and stores, Stockus noted.

“People need to go outside, communicate with other people and that’s really what malls are becoming,” she said.

Stockus, who studied business administration at London’s Western University, spent 17 years teaching hospitality and tourism in China. She was working for the Regal Hotel in Toronto when she volunteered for a year-long assignment at the company’s hotel training school in Beijing in advance of that city hosting the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Afterwards, she took a job working for a university in Huizhou, about an hour from Hong Kong, to teach hospitality, tourism and marketing.

“An escape from the routine, that’s what tourism is all about,” Stockus said in trying to find ways for the centre to provide experiences for people.

But there’s still the business side of the centre that needs attention.

Stockus said the mall is reaching outside of Chatham-Kent to attract retailers through affordable leases at less than $20 per square foot.

“And even that’s negotiable,” she added.

There is also an incentive of a free first year for signing a six-year lease.

Stockus said talks are in progress about taking over the floors of space left vacant when the centre’s original anchor tenant, Sears, closed a few years ago.

Other plans include trying to attract a dine-in restaurant back to the mall, along with filling up the empty spaces in the food court area.

She said the mall is open to using its space for exhibits, product launches, trade shows and even wedding receptions.

Jarnail Gahunia and his wife Inder have operated T’s and Sweats in the Downtown Chatham Centre for more than 10 years.

He said they’ve been able to survive because they enjoy a good base of customers.

“Otherwise, ever since the Sears closed, we don’t see too much walk-through traffic,” Gahunia said.

He expressed excitement about the plans by Stockus to attract people to the mall.

“That’s the main thing, to bring the people downtown and they will see what’s available here and what kind of opportunities are here,” he said.

Other owners have tried different approaches to fill the empty space in the mall, which have steadily increased over the years.

Stockus said the office space created on the second floor that temporarily housed IT employees from Union Gas is now occupied by a call centre.

But there is similar space that was left empty by a former private college.

Stockus said the Downtown Chatham Centre is in the process of converting a large chunk of the second floor into a health and wellness centre to attract dentists, massage therapists, and chiropractors.

Another change for the mall will be increased marketing.

Stockus said when the economy tightens, businesses often reduce their marketing budget.

“I’ve learned from the hotel industry this is the big mistake.”

She said if people don’t know you are still in business, it’s easy to assume you are not.

“We’ve got to spend the marketing dollars, tell people we are alive and well,” she added.

Acknowledging it will take time to transform the Downtown Chatham Centre, Stockus said they’re trying to achieve this paradigm shift “as soon as possible.”

eshreve@postmedia.com