Between Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom—beyond the ever-rotating selection of high-end designers and mall stalwarts like Bath & Body Works—NorthPark Center’s tenant updates occasionally reflect larger retail trends. There was the death and rebranded rebirth of Abercrombie & Fitch and the 2022 closure of the first Texas H&M. Some Dallasites are still shedding tears over Barneys New York. I remain bummed about Pirch. As one of the top-performing shopping centers in the country (about $1.36 billion in sales last year), NorthPark feels immune to the current trials and tribulations of a typical mall, which makes the comings and goings of its tenants all the more interesting.
The most recent retail trend emerging at NorthPark: digital-first brands built on the strength of Valencia filter-loving millennials now turning to traditional brick-and-mortar. Forget water-testing pop-up shops or zero inventory stores. They’re diving headfirst into mall retail with intricately designed spaces and splashy grand openings. The most notable versions of this trend, Glossier and Hill House, opened back-to-back this October.
Glossier’s Dallas Opening
First on the docket is Glossier, which has charted a unique retail course to arrive at its first permanent Texas store. The famously direct-to-consumer beauty brand, founded in 2014 by Emily Weiss and known for cutesy product names like “Cloud Paint” and “Balm Dotcalm,” caused a local frenzy when one of its immersive pop-ups hit Henderson Avenue in 2017. Glossier’s post-pandemic fall from grace has been well documented, but its comeback, marked by new CEO Kyle Leahy and a play for wholesale at Sephora, seems strong so far.
Permanent stores—with all the panache of the Glossier pop-ups without the temporary lease—are also part of that revival plan. The past two years have seen openings in New York, Chicago, Washington DC, and Atlanta. The NorthPark location is the brand’s first in Texas.
Clean-lined and uncluttered, the space reads more like a showroom than a shop. Merch takes up nearly as much real estate as skincare and makeup. A center installation showcases what’s new (Glossier You perfume, which has been getting raves) and is currently topped with a modern arrangement by floral artist Nolan Kiser (aka Bottega de Flores).
Hill House Finds a Home in Dallas
There is more to Hill House than the nap dress, though you’d be forgiven for thinking the Instagram-famous garment was the brand’s only item. “Nap Dress Nation” is a powerful, highly engaged community. The direct-to-consumer company, founded by Nell Diamond in 2016, launched as a bedding brand before it found its hero product in 2019. Today, Hill House offers an array of lifestyle products for the grandmillenial aesthetic, including pajamas, quilted jackets, statement hair bows, sheets, and wallpaper. Naturally, there’s a monogram shop.
Speaking of Nap Dress Nation, Dallas shoppers showed up (several with kids in tow) for the NorthPark Center opening this Wednesday to meet Diamond in person and shop the CeCe Barfield Thompson-designed space, the fifth in Hill House’s portfolio of stores (other outposts are in New York, Palm Beach, Charleston, and Nantucket).
Located just a few doors down from one another (between Nordstrom and Macy’s), both stores are aiming to capture new Gen Z shoppers—teens are still the lifeblood of malls, after all. But despite their visual disparities (one is all frills, the other has virtually none), the thoughtful application of millennial pink remains a common thread.
Madewell Men’s
In August 2006, then-CEO of J. Crew Group Mickey Drexler debuted the first store for the company’s new casual brand, Madewell, in NorthPark Center. 18 years later, that original space has unveiled a sprawling expansion that includes a section dedicated to Madewell Men’s, a category that’s been killing it lately thanks to its new head of men’s design Luke Linder.
Madewell has always embraced the mall, but it owes its longevity to the millennials who have long shelled out for the brand’s comfortable, dependably on-trend jeans. It-stores come and go, but denim loyalty is forever.
Author
