Rivers run dry at mall

By Patrick Wood
Updated November 7 2012 - 2:14pm, first published January 8 2011 - 12:34am

STURT Mall is undergoing a shake-up as electronics chain Dick Smith begins major expansion plans.Clothing and footwear chain Rivers has been forced to move from its premises after failing to come to a rental agreement with centre management.Dick Smith has seized the opportunity and plans to move into the car park-facing outlet while also extending into what is currently a hairdressers and card shop.Card Cage will be absorbed into the newly named Sturt Mall Newsagency and Reflections hairdressers will shift to half of the old My House shopfront close to the Baylis Street entrance.The game of musical chairs has already begun, with Rivers being the only business left without a shopfront to operate from.Rivers area manager Gary Johnston said he was currently looking for a new outlet in Wagga and hoped to reopen in the next three to six months.“It will be bigger ... 600 square metres is the minimum size we look for,” he said.Mr Johnston said existing staff would be welcome to reapply for their positions but none were being automatically carried over.He said Dick Smith representatives had begun preliminary investigations on the move.“They were here the other day, looking around. They were asking what it was like to be on this side,” he said.Sturt Mall centre manager Kane Harding yesterday could not confirm some of the changes taking place until leases had been signed.However, he indicated there would be some fresh changes coming which would be of benefit to the mall.The Daily Advertiser yesterday sought comment from Dick Smith but no one was able to discuss the move.

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