A Round 1 Entertainment venue is coming to Deptford Mall with a targeted opening in 2020! They are also slated to be coming to the new Philadelphia Fashion District (Formerly the Gallery in Center City). The confirmation for the Deptford location comes from the Round1USA.com website where Deptford Mall is listed at least twice as “Coming Soon 2020” on the website!

Round 1

Round 1 started in Japan and they are in growth mode across the US. They are in the same business category as Dave and Busters. The unique twist for Round 1 is the feature bowling lanes, darts, ping pong and karaoke, to go along with expected arcade games! Food and alcohol (beer) are also typically part of the fun mix. There are variations to each location and we don’t 100% know what is in store for the Deptford Location. Round 1 has a nearby open location in Exton PA and 42Freeway hopes to visit soon to check it out first hand.

Competition Race – Dave and Busters

Dave And Busters is planned for nearby Gloucester Premium Outlets and they also updated their status by saying they will have an April 2020 opening. So the race is on to see who will open first! 42Freeway scooped the Dave and Buster’s story months before other media outlets, and was at the Planning Board meeting to hear the approval.

42Freeway was the first to report that a large family entertainment venue was being planned for the Deptford Mall (not being Dave and Busters), and that the owners of the mall (Macerich) had acquired a liquor license, presumably to support this new venue but that is still to be determined (many other rumors floating around!). In our February 9, 2019 post we identified Round 1 as a top choice.

Other changes at the Mall

Also previously reported first at 42Freeway, the Dick’s Sporting Goods location will be moving into the Mall also. We can assume that Dick’s will occupy most of one floor (I believe to the lower level) and Round 1 will occupy the other (second floor). The plans for Dick’s that I was able to review seem to indicate room for additional stores alongside Ruby Tuesday’s.

A New Retail World

The retail mall scene is drastically changing with the onslaught of online retailers, and the traditional mall and shopping center retailers are looking for innovative ways to bring shoppers into their centers… while you’re hear to bowl, how about a stroll through the mall to shop at the stores? We believe the Round 1 location in Deptford will be in the Sears building’s top floor giving visitors direct access to the stores. This differs from the approach over at the Gloucester Outlets where the Dave and Buster’s will be in a separate building within the larger Outlet area, but far enough away that they may not get the automatic movement between shopping and Dave and Busters.

A huge hat tip to 42Freeway reader Mike C for noticing the location change on the Round 1 website, and for reaching out to me. I owe you a beer!