Glendale Fashion Center

Glendale Fashion Center was a regional shopping mall in Glendale, California, that opened in 1966. The original enclosed or mall-format center was built around department-store anchors and a group of smaller specialty retailers, reflecting the postwar expansion of suburban shopping destinations in the Los Angeles region. Its initial anchor lineup included J. W. Robinson's, Joseph Magnin, and Desmond's, and the center opened with approximately 25 retailers. The property changed as the Glendale retail market evolved. Joseph Magnin subsequently relocated to the nearby Glendale Galleria, while local retailer Webb's expanded into the former space associated with the center. Webb's increased its floor area from approximately 30,000 square feet to 67,500 square feet and moved into the enlarged premises on September 27, 1979. This transition illustrates the center's reliance on department-store and large-format tenants as its principal traffic generators. The original mall was severely affected by the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Following the damage, the mall structure was demolished rather than restored in its former configuration. The site was then redeveloped as a substantially larger open-air power center, still using the Glendale Fashion Center name. The replacement center covers approximately 264,474 square feet and has been associated with large-format retailers including World Market, Michaels, Ross Dress for Less, Ralphs, Staples, TJ Maxx, Total Wine, Bath & Body Works, and Nordstrom Rack. As a result, Glendale Fashion Center has two distinct identities: a former regional mall opened in 1966 and a later power-center retail property occupying the same site. The original shopping mall is defunct, while the name continues to identify the redeveloped retail center. Its history is primarily one of suburban retail format change, tenant turnover, earthquake-related reconstruction, and a shift from department-store anchoring to a diversified open-air collection of national retailers.

Glendale Fashion Center began operations in 1966 as a regional shopping mall in Glendale, California. Its opening reflected the growth of suburban retail development in the Los Angeles area and the importance of department stores as anchors for newly built shopping centers. J. W. Robinson's, Joseph Magnin, and Desmond's formed the original anchor group, while approximately 25 additional retailers supplied fashion, specialty, and other consumer merchandise. The center's tenant composition changed during the following decade. Joseph Magnin eventually transferred its Glendale presence to the Glendale Galleria, a competing or complementary retail destination in the same city. The departure created an opportunity for Webb's, a local retailer, to enlarge its role at Glendale Fashion Center. Webb's expanded from roughly 30,000 square feet to approximately 67,500 square feet and moved into the enlarged premises on September 27, 1979. The change demonstrates how local department-store-style operators could replace or absorb space formerly occupied by national or regional anchors. The original mall's physical history was interrupted by the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Damage from the earthquake led to the demolition of the mall rather than a return to its former enclosed regional-shopping format. The property was subsequently rebuilt as an open-air power center. Although the new development retained the Glendale Fashion Center name, it represented a different retail model: a larger-format, automobile-oriented center organized around national chains and big-box or off-price tenants rather than a traditional enclosed mall anchored primarily by department stores. The redeveloped center is reported to contain approximately 264,474 square feet. Its tenant mix has included World Market, Michaels, Ross Dress for Less, Ralphs, Staples, TJ Maxx, Total Wine, Bath & Body Works, and Nordstrom Rack. These retailers span home furnishings, arts and crafts, off-price apparel, groceries, office supplies, wine and beverages, personal care, and branded outlet-style merchandise. The variety gives the property a broad everyday-shopping role rather than the more fashion-centered profile suggested by its historic mall name. Glendale Fashion Center therefore encompasses a sequence of retail formats on one site. The 1966 center was a department-store-anchored regional mall; the post-earthquake property became an open-air power center. The original mall is no longer extant and should be treated as defunct, while the Glendale Fashion Center name remains associated with the redeveloped retail site. Available reference material does not identify a founder, ownership history, operating company, website, financial results, or named executives.

• 1994

  Earthquake damage changes the site's future

  [1]Glendale Fashion Centeren.wikipedia.org

  The Northridge earthquake damages the original mall, which is later demolished.

• 1979

  Webb's expands into enlarged premises

  [1]Glendale Fashion Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Following Joseph Magnin's move to the Glendale Galleria, Webb's expands its space from about 30,000 to 67,500 square feet and relocates into the enlarged premises on September 27.

• 1966

  Original regional mall opens

  [1]Glendale Fashion Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Glendale Fashion Center opens in Glendale, California, with J. W. Robinson's, Joseph Magnin, and Desmond's as anchors and approximately 25 retailers.

• Site redeveloped as an open-air power center

  [1]Glendale Fashion Centeren.wikipedia.org

  The former mall site is converted into an approximately 264,474-square-foot open-air power center that continues to use the Glendale Fashion Center name.

A suburban regional shopping destination that transitioned from a department-store-anchored mall to an open-air power center serving Glendale and the surrounding Los Angeles area.

• Shopping center · 1966

  Original regional shopping mall

  The original Glendale Fashion Center was a department-store-anchored regional mall opened in 1966. Its retail offer combined J. W. Robinson's, Joseph Magnin, and Desmond's with approximately 25 smaller retailers. The center represented the conventional suburban mall model of its period, using large anchor stores to generate visits and smaller specialty shops to provide apparel, accessories, and other consumer merchandise.

• Shopping center

  Open-air power center

  The replacement property occupies the former mall site and uses a large-format open-air power-center configuration. Reported tenants have included World Market, Michaels, Ross Dress for Less, Ralphs, Staples, TJ Maxx, Total Wine, Bath & Body Works, and Nordstrom Rack. The mix covers groceries, home goods, arts and crafts, office supplies, off-price merchandise, beverages, beauty products, and outlet-style fashion.

• 1994

  Redevelopment after earthquake damageStrategy

  Background

  The original mall sustained damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, creating a need to determine whether to restore the existing structure or replace it.

  Action taken

  The mall was demolished and the site was redeveloped as an open-air power center while retaining the Glendale Fashion Center name.

  Aftermath

  The property shifted from an enclosed, department-store-anchored regional mall to a larger-format center with a diversified national-retailer tenant mix.

  Source

1. 1Glendale Fashion Centeren.wikipedia.org