Skechers assistant store manager Melanie Cruz, left, and store manager Cera LaFave welcome shoppers to the new Citrus Heights Skechers store. Photo by Thomas J. Sullivan

CITRUS HEIGHTS, CA (MPG) - Footwear retailer Skechers has completed its relocation from the Citrus Town Center into its new location in the former home of a shuttered Walgreens drugstore at the corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Greenback Lane in the Market Place at Birdcage.

Skechers welcomed its first retail customers in a soft public opening on Dec. 15.

Wearing antlers and getting in the festive holiday spirit, store manager Cera Lafave and assistant store manager Melanie Cruz greeted shoppers who braved the rain to the new Citrus Heights store on Dec. 16.

Laura Diab Lindberg, Skechers executive director of public relations in Manhattan Beach, had confirmed the upcoming mid-month opening in an earlier email.

The new Skechers store, situated adjacent to the Lowe’s Building Center along Greenback Lane, is double the size of its former Citrus Town Center location, providing better vehicular parking for customers.

Skechers has relocated to 6199 Sunrise Blvd., Citrus Heights. Photo by Thomas J. Sullivan

The 14,820-square-foot building at 6199 Sunrise Blvd. was built in 2007 and is located on a two-acre parcel directly across from Sunrise Mall.

Inside the new Skechers store, wider aisles create a more welcoming open, less cluttered feel than the former location.

Exterior landscaping was also trimmed back and refreshed during the recent renovation and prominent marquee signage is better visible from Greenback Lane and Sunrise Boulevard.

No information was available from the property owner as to who will lease the space vacated by Skechers in the Citrus Town Center where nearby retail stores include Half Price Books, Marshalls and Five Below. Skechers had occupied a substantial anchor retail position in the center.

A representative for Inter-Cal Real Estate Corporation of Sacramento, property owner/manager for the Citrus Town Center, did not respond to a request for who will fill the vacant space now that the relocation of Skechers to the Marketplace in Birdcage is complete.

The new Skechers store has a wide array of shoe choices for customers. Photo by Thomas J. Sullivan

Skechers, based in Manhattan Beach, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle and performance footwear, apparel and accessories for men, women and children. The company’s collections are available in 180 countries and territories through department and specialty stores, and direct to consumers through skechers.com and approximately 5,200 Skechers retail stores.

Skechers in Citrus Heights is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays. Call 916-721-3118 for more information.