T-L Photo/GAGE VOTA The luxurious seats at Golden Ticket Cinemas located in the Ohio Valley Mall

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — As online shopping becomes the method of choice for millions of Americans, the Ohio Valley Mall has no plans in slowing down.

Throughout the 2025 calendar year, eight new entities have decided to call the mall its home.

Piercings N More, JD Sports, Golden Ticket Cinemas, Angels All-Star Cheering, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Burlington Coat Factory, Boot Barn and Ironblast’s Game Zone have all opened inside the mall. In addition Academy Sports + Outdoors and Burlington will soon occupy much of what used to be a Sears store, while Boot Barn will set up shop in part of another former Macy’s space.

Ironblast’s Game Zone opened in the former Sam’s Goody location in July, Angel’s All-Star Cheering opened in the former Elder-Beerman location in September and Piercings N More opened at the former Aeropostale location in October as did JD Sports where the former Finish Line was located.

With stores opening and closing, it’s no secret that online shopping has changed the game of retail. To combat the ever changing dynamic, the Ohio Valley Mall has brought in non-traditional businesses to operate inside the mall. O.V. Crossfit, All-Star Cheering and Just Flip Out are three locations some might not think would be successful in a mall but are.

“It makes sense to bring in a variety of retailers and other businesses,” said Joe Bell, director of communications for the mall’s parent Cafaro Co. “Local business owners are very important. They’re part of the mix, and we think that makes for a more vibrant shopping center.”

He added that large retail stores moving out of the mall or closing in general is not unique to the Ohio Valley area.

“They’ve been going through their own type of metamorphosis, so to speak, and a lot of national chains in the past five to 10 years have gone away, based on changes in the industry or pressure from investors. We’ve seen a lot of corporate bankruptcies in that time frame,” Bell said. “That has caused an upheaval in the mixtures you’ll find in shopping centers around America. Sears have gone away. Chains like Yonkers and others have gone out of business, and that has a lot to do with the changing lineup you’ll find at shopping centers.”

Bell said that going out of business isn’t the only reason a large company may prefer to not renew its contract with a shopping center.

“There are other types of influences as well. We’re talking about businesses that want to do different types of things with their customers,” Bell said. “They want smaller footprints in shopping centers. They’ll do a lot of their business by using their physical location as a showcase of what they can sell and fulfill it through online delivery.”

He added that all of the examples he gave played a role in the change in shopping centers across America, which led to the Ohio Valley Mall innovating and adapting with the times.

The most exciting news for many Belmont County residents was the opening of Golden Ticket Cinemas in the former AMC Theater location. Almost seven months to the date after Golden Ticket Cinemas announced it was coming to the mall, it opened its doors in late November.

The cinema features luxury recliners, extensive food and beverage menu, a beer wall, deliver-to-seat service, upgraded visuals and sound – and every Tuesday all tickets are $5.75 for all seats.