Five Below will occupy the former Aaron Brothers space in River Park Shopping Center. Photo by Edward Smith.

The discount retailer making a killing with pre-teens has submitted plans to move into Fresno’s River Park shopping center.

Five Below, the “tween and tween value retailer,” as the company markets itself, will occupy the former Aaron Brothers space next to Payless Shoe Source, said Tracy Kashian, vice president of marketing at property manager Lance Kashian & Co.

It could open by spring 2020, Kashian added.

Aaron Brothers, an art supply store that closed in 2018, stands at around 6,516 square feet, according to a project description filed with the City of Fresno.

Permits filed with the city propose adding 1,984 square feet to the shell of the building and another 1,468 square feet to the rear, according to the City of Fresno’s permitting website.

That would bring the total footprint to 9,968, more in line with the company’s other locations, including a Visalia store that opened in March and another Fresno store planned for the Marketplace at El Paseo near Herndon Avenue and Highway 99.

Five Below currently has 750 stores in 33 states, and recently announced an ambitious plan to open 145 to 150 new stores in fiscal 2019, up from the 125 new locations it opened last year.

---

Related story: Five Below finds Valley while bucking retail trends