Concord Mills expands lineup with lantern festival, new stores and rescued turtle

Concord Mills, one of the state’s largest malls, has added more stores and entertainment to its lineup.

An iconic Western ware retailer and lantern festival recently debuted at the Concord mall, mall property owner Simon said Monday in a news release.

Concord Mills mall, off Exit 49 in Concord about 14 miles northeast of uptown Charlotte, opened in 1999. It’s the largest outlet mall in North Carolina with 190 stores and a 24-screen AMC/IMAX movie theater, and sits just down the road from Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Here’s what’s new at the mall:

▪ Cavender’s Boot City, based in Tyler, Texas, debuted its first North Carolina store at the mall in February. The retailer has boots, hats, denim, and accessories with brands including Ariat, Wrangler, Stetson and Resistol. The store is near Entrance 5.

▪ Random Fandom is a toy store that has collectibles including Funko Pop!, Pokemon and NBA, NFL and MLB cards. The store isnear Entrance 3, across from Dick’s Sporting Goods.

▪ Tianyu Lights Festival is a ticketed nighttime experience featuring 25 lantern installations. The exhibit includes nightly acrobatic performances, an interactive light-up playground and arcade games. Tickets prices are $15 for children ages 3-11 and $20 for ages 12 and older.

It’s in the AMC parking lot through June 22.

▪ SEA LIFE Charlotte-Concord Aquarium has a new resident. “Mills,” a rescued Kemp’s ridley sea turtle, is the most endangered sea turtle species in the world. SEA LIFE is near Entrance 7.

New stores headed to Concord Mills

More stores are opening, too, including a GAP outlet, Kids Jungle Playground, RSRVE men’s clothing store and Starbucks, according to the mall’s website.

Simon, based in Indianapolis, also owns SouthPark mall and Charlotte Premium Outlets.