Gift cards have long played a central role in shopping center strategies. They attract new customers, encourage cross-store spending, and provide a simple solution for gift-givers. 

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Yet the traditional closed-loop systems that once supported these programs - where cards could only be used with select merchants tied directly into the mall’s internal network - are showing their age. They no longer align with the expectations of today’s shoppers or the operational needs of large, premium mall groups. 

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To stay competitive against both e-commerce giants and other retail destinations, one leading North American shopping mall group decided it was time to reinvent its gift card program. They turned to Berkeley Payment Solutions to deliver a prepaid, open-loop platform that combines an enhanced customer experience with powerful operational and data-driven insights. 

The Challenge: Outgrowing a Closed-Loop System 

While closed-loop gift cards once provided a convenient solution, their limitations had become increasingly clear for this mall operator, specifically in the following ways: 

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• Cumbersome Merchant Onboarding: Every new store required technical integration, slowing expansion and creating barriers for temporary tenants or pop-up shops.
• Inconsistent Customer Experience: Shoppers needed to confirm which stores accepted the card, and many ended up with small balances they couldn’t easily use.
• Fragmented Data: Closed-loop systems made it difficult to analyze shopper journeys, understand spend patterns, or evaluate merchant-level performance. 
• Restricted Scalability: Expanding across multiple malls meant duplicating processes and infrastructure, a costly and time-intensive endeavor.
• Rising Competitive Pressure: To compete with the ease of online gift cards, the mall needed mobile compatibility and a more modern user experience.

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This mall operator required more than a gift card. It needed a strategic tool for engagement, insights, and growth. 

The Solution: An Open-Loop Prepaid Card Program Powered by Berkeley

Partnering with Berkeley Payment Solutions, the mall group launched a network-branded prepaid card program that combined flexibility, security, and real-time issuance. The program was designed to function exclusively at merchants within the group’s malls nationwide, while leveraging the advantages of an open-loop Visa/Mastercard infrastructure. 

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Key program features and benefits included:

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• Instant Issuance & Digital Wallet Integration: Customers can activate cards in real-time, receive them digitally, and add them directly to Apple Pay or Google Pay through Berkeley’s push provisioning feature. This allows shoppers to enjoy instant access without waiting for physical mail delivery, perfect for last-minute gifts or spontaneous purchases.
• Frictionless Merchant Acceptance: Any mall retailer that accepts Visa/Mastercard automatically accepts the card with no technical onboarding required. This simplifies operations and ensures full merchant coverage, even as new stores open. 
• Enhanced Customer Experience: Cards are valid across all mall retailers, reducing leftover balances and eliminating confusion about acceptance. Shoppers enjoy a smoother, more reliable experience that encourages higher usage and repeat visits. 
• Advanced Data & Analytics: The program delivers detailed transaction data - from frequent vs. dormant users to cross-store shopping journeys and merchant-level performance - allowing operators to create targeted promotions, boost redemptions, and design VIP programs while moving from reactive to proactive decision-making. 
• Scalable Architecture & Operational Efficiency: With built-in fraud protection, simplified settlement, and cloud-based infrastructure, the program is secure and easy to scale, reducing overhead while enabling fast rollout across multiple properties and new features. 

The Results: A Data-Driven, Customer-Centric Mall Card

Within months of launch, the program generated strong adoption and measurable impact, including:

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• $23.9M total load volume since inception, with $8.1M loaded in just the first five months of 2025.
• $14.2M in total spend across luxury, fashion, and everyday retailers.
• High merchant engagement including luxury department stores, fashion brands like Aritzia and Zara, and essential retailers such as Walmart and Shoppers.
• Strong customer adoption of digital features, such as push provisioning and mobile wallet integration which significantly reduced friction.
• Improved operational performance, including 99.95%+ system availability and 90% of support tickets resolved within 24 hours.

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These results revealed clear demographic insights: younger, fashion-conscious shoppers embraced the card for mid-tier brands, while luxury buyers used it for high-ticket purchases. Everyday retailers captured consistent, smaller transactions, broadening the card’s utility and appeal. 

Strategic Insights: What the Data Reveals 

The mall group’s upgraded gift card solution provided a depth of intelligence unavailable under the previous mode, including:

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• High-Value Customer Identification: The program highlighted top spenders, enabling the mall group to design targeted VIP perks and loyalty offers.
• Dormant Balance Reactivation: Analysis of time-to-spend patterns informed campaigns to encourage usage before balances expired.
• Merchant Impact Measurement: Performance tracking demonstrated how the card program drove incremental sales for both anchor tenants and speciality retailers.
• Fraud Detection: Network-level monitoring flagged anomalies like rapid spend or reseller abuse, protecting both merchants and customers.

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These insights optimized the current program and laid the groundwork for new revenue opportunities and deeper customer engagement going forward.

Why it Worked

The program’s success can be attributed to three overarching factors:

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1. Customer-Centric Design: A frictionless, mobile-ready solution that made gift cards easier to use and more rewarding for shoppers.
2. Operational Strength: Seamless merchant acceptance, robust fraud prevention, and dependable service ensured reliability at scale.
3. Growth-Ready Platform: With real-time issuance, advanced analytics, and scalable architecture, the foundation is in place to expand to new locations and add new features. 

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By modernizing its gift card program with Berkeley’s open-loop prepaid solution, this mall group transformed a legacy system into a strategic, data-rich, customer-first platform. 

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The results speak for themselves: higher load volumes, stronger merchant participation, better customer satisfaction, and a scalable foundation for growth.

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Berkeley Payment Solutions empowers enterprises to modernize payments with secure, turnkey prepaid and real-time money movement programs. If you’re ready to reinvent your gift card or incentive program, contact us to learn more. 

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