Largest in Ohio: Crowds flock to opening of new Bass Pro Shops

• PHOTOS: Ohio’s largest Bass Pro Shops opens in West Chester Twp.

The Bass Pro Shops’ Outdoor World is the latest addition of a nationally recognized business to both The Streets of West Chester development — which includes the region’s Top Golf facility as well as other popular attractions — and adds to the booming I-75 growth corridor between Cincinnati and Dayton.

West Chester and its drawing power from communities all along I-75 in southwest Ohio made for a natural decision along with the company’s history in northern Greater Cincinnati that also prompted the move, said Mike Adlesh, general manager of the 125,000-square-foot store.

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“We have a lot of history in Ohio and we’ve had two great stores here (Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops) and we had this opportunity to merge two stores and two teams into one new superstore with expanded selections and assortments,” said Adlesh.

“It’s the best of both worlds in bringing two brands together right here in West Chester.”

The festivities around the opening ceremony included live music and gifts along with many top names in outdoor sports including TV show hosts, fishing and hunting stars and other notable conservationists.

The event kicked off a five-day opening celebration for the store, which company officials said is the largest Bass Pro Shops in the state.

For more than a decade the much-anticipated retailer — which first bought its 22 acres site off Allen Road in 2013 — has been envisioned as a crowning jewel in the popular Streets of West Chester mixed residential, restaurant and entertainment district.

Barb Wilson, spokeswoman for West Chester Twp., praised the Bass Pro Shops as another desirable lure for the fast-growing area.

“The store looks beautiful and is very visible. Bass Pro Shops is yet another unique anchor to West Chester’s Union Centre area,” she said. “It seemed every week for the past few years, we’ve had contact with people wanting to know when Bass Pro was coming. Well, Bass Pro is here and we hope the community is pleased.

“There have been so many great things happening at The Streets of West Chester lately and the opening of Bass Pro Shops is certainly the most anticipated. This great new destination retailer joins Duluth, TopGolf, Main Event, AMC, Barnes & Nobles, a couple new breweries and many others that make the Streets of West Chester a really unique experience,” said Wilson.

Joe Hinson, president and CEO of the West Chester Liberty Chamber Alliance, said the store’s positive impact resonates far beyond the Butler County community.

“With 153,000 vehicles daily traveling though West Chester on I-75, this new premier location will be positioned to better serve our local communities, including Cincinnati and Dayton, and is easily assessable to other close proximity markets: Columbus, Indianapolis, Lexington, and Louisville, more than doubling Bass Pro Shops’ consumer outreach,” said Hinson.