Two new tenants have already been added to its lineup over the past month, while an established tenant has upgraded to a larger shopfront.
The mall has also teased the debut of three new brands to the city in coming months.
The Icon Group managing director Robert Platt said the mall had experienced good inquiry from retailers looking to expand into Dunedin over the past six months — a “noticeable uptick” on the previous 12 months.
“And the recent leases shows this demand.”
Collectables and blind box retailer Pop Stop had leased on the lower ground level next to the food court, while spray tanning salon Tan in The City was also open and trading, on the top floor.
Existing tenant Pandora had more than doubled its footprint at its new corner site opposite Michael Hill jeweller.
Other leases including a new food court operator had also been signed over the past couple of months, bringing Meridian Mall close to 100% occupancy.
Most new tenants would begin trading before Christmas this year, Mr Platt said.
There have been several high-profile retail exits from Meridian Mall in recent years.
In 2020, it lost Australian-owned retail giant Kmart, which cited concerns about required seismic strengthening work within the premises and chose to vacate the building.
The H&J Smith Dunedin department store, formerly Arthur Barnett, closed its doors in 2021 after 118 years in business.
The mall then lost Smiths City — which replaced Kmart’s tenancy — which late last year confirmed it was relocating to the former Animal Attraction premises between Crawford and Vogel Sts.
Mr Platt confirmed the former Smiths City tenancy on the top floor had now been leased to three separate “mini major tenants”.
Filling this lease had been a major project for the mall this year, he said.
“I am not able to announce names yet, however building consent is lodged and we should be building the tenancy walls starting in August, target opening in November.
“These are new brands to Dunedin and we are really excited to welcome them to Meridian Mall.”
