The buy-now, pay-later platform Afterpay and Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, owner of Westfield shopping centers across the United States, have announced an integrated, multiyear partnership to support retailers and help consumers by offering the latter a more flexible way to pay for purchases as foot traffic begins to return to stores.

Afterpay and URW plan on jointly investing in new customer experiences, retail innovations, events, marketing and on-premise advertising at Westfield shopping centers. The companies also have plans to take the partnership global in the coming months.

“Afterpay is an ideal solution for this new era of commerce because our contactless payment solution is secure and clean while also allowing shoppers to spend responsibly and avoid revolving debt and interest,” said General Manager of Afterpay North America Zahir Khoja. “We are thrilled to partner with Westfield as shoppers and retailers alike celebrate the reopening of stores.”

Lush Cosmetics, Aldo, The Children's Place and The Container Store are a few of the new brands at Westfield that have begun accepting Afterpay. The option comes on the heels of a survey conducted by Westfield that found nearly half of consumers are excited to shop in-person again and 63 percent called in-person shopping a “special treat.” Moreover, 73 percent of shoppers also said that the ability to go home with their purchases immediately is a big factor in their decision to return to malls.

“Afterpay is the ideal BNPL partner for us because we share a commitment to providing seamless and effective solutions to retailers that, in turn, provide increased choice and flexibility for consumers,” said Colin Shaughnessy, executive vice president of U.S. leasing for URW. “We look forward to working together to elevate the in-store shopping and media experience across our portfolio in the U.S.”