CASE STUDY A RETAIL CENTER FACING CHANGE: USING DATA TO DETERMINE MARKETING STRATEGY Kristen L. Walker, Mary T. Curren, and Tina Kiesler Plaza del Valle is an open-air shopping center in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles. The new marketing manager must review primary and secondary data to determine a target market, a product positioning strategy, and a promotion strategy for the retail shopping center with the ultimate goal of increasing revenue for the Plaza. She is overwhelmed with data and must determine which information to use and how best to use it to make her strategic decisions. "The only thing that is constant is change." -Heraclitus The current retail environment is undergoing change. Malls are on their way out, and it is rare to see physical retailers doing well. Online shopping is killing brick-and-mortar sales (Hudson 2012). How will existing mall owners navigate their way through the decline phase of the mall life cycle? As vacancy rates at malls and strip centers increase, how can they avoid ending up on DeadMalls.com? Paige Zamora, a newly minted MBA, has finally landed a job-unfortunately, on a "trial" basis. She was hired to come up with a viable plan for an urban mall seeking to avoid ending up on DeadMalls.com. She's been given two months to prove herself. Her first action was to commis- sion a market research study of consumers in the primarily Hispanic neighborhoods surrounding the mall. Next, she contacted the San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center for assistance. Now she must wade through the data and figure out what to do. Kristen L. Walker (Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles), Associate Professor of Marketing, College of Business and Eco- nomics, California State University Northridge, Northridge, CA, kristen.walker@csun.edu. PLAZA DEL VALLE Plaza del Valle is a unique plaza-style retail center and the only open-air mall in densely populated Panorama City situ- ated in the heart of the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles. Plaza del Valle sits on 14 acres bounded by a large intersection, with a single-family residential community on its east side and a multifamily residential community to the northwest. The Plaza is within walking distance from these neighboring communities and is strategically located on the main artery of the city, Van Nuys Boulevard. It is open from 10 A.M. to 8 P.M., seven days a week. The Plaza has no major anchor retail stores. It consists of a variety of small-scale retailers, the majority of which are family owned and operated. Stores at the Plaza offer various merchandise, services, and authentic Mexican food. Plaza management maintains a strong focus on corporate social responsibility. Consequently, many community events, such as health fairs and farmers' markets, are hosted at the Plaza in its courtyard (see Figure 1). While the Plaza does not have an explicit mission statement, its philosophy is to create a people-friendly place where individuals can com- mune, shop, eat, and enjoy life. Plaza del Valle is perceived positively among community agencies.