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Fashion Fair

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Coordinates: 36°48′22″N 119°46′34″W / 36.806°N 119.776°W / 36.806; -119.776
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Fashion Fair
Fashion Fair Mall sign
Map
LocationFresno, California, United States
Coordinates36°48′22″N 119°46′34″W / 36.806°N 119.776°W / 36.806; -119.776
Address645 E. Shaw Avenue
Opening date1970
DeveloperMacDonald Group
OwnerThe Macerich Company
No. of stores and services130+
No. of anchor tenants4
Total retail floor area963,000 sq ft (89,500 m2)
No. of floors1 (2 in JCPenney, 3 in Forever 21 and Macy's)
Parkingparking lot, valet
Websitefashionfairmall.com

Fashion Fair is an enclosed regional shopping mall in Fresno, California, United States, anchored by two Macy's stores, JCPenney, and Forever 21. Originally opened in 1970, Fashion Fair was expanded in 1983 (to accommodate Macy's and a new food court) and in 2005 (with the addition of an outdoor lifestyle wing). It competes with The Shops at River Park and Fig Garden Village, two outdoor shopping centers in the city of Fresno.

History

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The 500,000 sq ft (46,000 m2) mall was built in 1970 by the MacDonald Group and was sold in 1987.[1][2] The mall originally opened with Gottschalks, JCPenney, and Weinstock's; Macy's joined the roster in 1983, along with an expansion wing west of JCPenney that included a food court. As a result, the mall has the distinction where one has to enter JCPenney to access one end of the mall to the other while inside.[3][4][5]

In 1996, Weinstock's parent company, Broadway Department Stores, merged with its competitor, Federated Department Stores.[6][7] While most of Broadway's stores were converted to the Macy's nameplate, Weinstock's stores in Fresno and Modesto were traded to Gottschalks.[8] This allowed Gottschalks to take over the larger Weinstock's buildings, while Macy's converted the original Gottschalks stores into separate Macy's Men's & Children's stores. Gottschalks filed for bankruptcy in 2009 and sold its lease to Forever 21.[9] In 2019, Macy's relocated the children's department back to the original Macy's building to make room for the addition of Macy's Backstage.

After an extensive remodel, Forever 21 opened on April 1, 2011; this was the largest Forever 21 operating in the United States (at the time) at 164,052 square feet. Approximately one year after opening, the store downsized and took the third level out of service. In spring 2019, amid company restructuring, the store downsized again, leaving only the first floor in use. The second level partially reopened on August 30, 2019, however, was closed again by October 24, 2019, leaving only the first floor in use once again. Forever 21 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on September 29, 2019. On October 1, 2019, this location was placed on the initial list of stores set to close by the end of the year. By October 31, 2019, the store was removed from the list of locations to close.

In 2005, construction on a 94,000 square-foot expansion commenced. Dubbed The Village at Fashion Fair, the open-air wing features upscale retailers including Charming Charlie, Lucky Brand Jeans, LUSH Cosmetics, Michael Kors, and Sephora; alongside The Cheesecake Factory and a Fleming's steakhouse.[10][11]

The Village has experienced significant turnover since it opened, with major retailers Urban Outfitters,[12] Anthropologie,[13] and Z Gallerie[14] (among others) exiting the property after less than 10 years in business. The former Urban Outfitters was replaced with an Ulta Beauty[15] store in 2018, which was joined by Fresno's second H&M store later in the year.[16][17] Charming Charlie, which originally replaced Z Gallerie, closed in 2019, and was replaced with a Five Below which opened September 27, 2019. However, Charming Charlie returned to the mall in 2021 as part of a revival of the chain, replacing a former Guess clothing store in The Village, before closing again the next year.[citation needed]

The mall added a forest-themed play area in 2008.[18]

A van selling official Hello Kitty merchandise has stopped at Fashion Fair Mall many times, drawing thousands.[19]

In 2022, the malls Foot Action, Kids Foot Locker, and Lady Foot Locker stores were all closed, replaced by a newly expanded Foot Locker store housing all departments in one location. As a result of the expansion, Aeropostale was relocated into the former Disney store at the other end of the mall. Cotton On, Sbarro, and JD Sports opened new locations in the mall. Additionally, X Lanes Family Entertainment Center opened a 50,000 square foot location featuring bowling, an arcade, and a restaurant in the mall's basement level, which had not been accessible since the mall's 2003 renovation.

The mall has lost several tenants since the COVID-19 pandemic, including Starbucks, Disney, New York & Company, Justice, Francesca's, Cinnabon, Auntie Anne's, Chipotle, Mrs. Fields, Call It Spring, Morphe, The Body Shop, and Michael Kors.

Anchor stores

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Anchor Year Opened Square Feet Notes
Macy's Women's, Children's, and Home 1983 176,410 sf Opened in 1983 as anchor to mall expansion.
Macy's Men's & Backstage 1996 76,650 sf Built 1970 as Gottschalks, became Macy's Men's & Children's in 1996 after Gottschalks relocated to former Weinstock's, Kids department relocated to women's store to make room for addition of Macy's Backstage in 2019
JCPenney 1970 153,769 sf Original anchor
Forever 21 2011 164,052 sf Opened in 1970 as Weinstock's, became Gottschalks in 1996 after Weinstock's/Macy's merger, became Forever 21 in 2011 after Gottschalks bankruptcy and liquidation in 2009; noted as the largest Forever 21 store in operation (only first floor currently in use)
H&M 2018 22,000 sf Junior anchor; formerly Forever 21 and Love Culture
X Lanes Family Entertainment Center 2022 50,000 sf Opened in 2022 in previously inaccessible basement level of the mall
Ulta Beauty 2018 10,164 sf Junior anchor; formerly Urban Outfitters

Former anchors

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  • Weinstock's (Opened 1970, closed 1996 due to Broadway-Federated merger)
  • Gottschalks (Opened 1970, moved to former Weinstock's in 1996, closed 2009 due to company liquidation)
  • Love Culture (Opened 2012 in former Forever 21 space, closed 2018, replaced by H&M)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "25 stores set Fashion Fair opening this weekend". The Fresno Bee. September 20, 1970. p. 60. Retrieved July 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ Coyle, Wanda (May 12, 1987). "McDonald Group selling off Fashion Fair". The Fresno Bee. p. 27. Retrieved July 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Fraser, Bruce W. (November 29, 1983). "Macy's new 'Miracle on 34th Street'". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 20 January 2016. In August, Macy's California division opened a 177,000-square-foot store in Fashion Fair, a shopping center in Fresno
  4. ^ Milos, Charles (July 4, 1980). "Macy's will build on old Starlite site". The Fresno Bee. p. 1. Retrieved July 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Milos, Charles (November 14, 1977). "Report asks denial of Macy's rezoning". The Fresno Bee. p. 1. Retrieved July 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Nax, Sanford (December 21, 1996). "Fashion Fair Mall is Sold". The Fresno Bee. p. 23. Retrieved July 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Federated to Buy Broadway Stores for $1.6 Billion". The New York Times. August 15, 1995. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  8. ^ "100 Years of Gottschalks". The Fresno Bee. September 17, 2004. p. C6. Retrieved July 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Macy's, Forever 21 to take over Gottschalks stores". ABC30. May 29, 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  10. ^ "Macerich Announces 13% Increase in FFO Per Share". PRNewswire. Archived from the original on 1 February 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  11. ^ Clough, Bethany (July 27, 2005). "Fashion Fair lands Cheesecake Factory, Fleming's Steakhouse". The Fresno Bee. p. C1. Retrieved July 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Retail Therapy: What happened to Urban Outfitters?". Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  13. ^ Clough, Bethany (February 16, 2017). "Fig Garden Village nabs Anthropologie, Paper Source Stores". Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  14. ^ "Lease Cancellations (June 14–20): Z Gallerie To Cancel 25 Store Leases". CoStar. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
  15. ^ Clough, Bethany (March 17, 2017). "Ulta Beauty coming to Fashion Fair, more changes on the way". Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  16. ^ "Fashion Fair location for H&M clothing store to open September 13". ABC30 Fresno. September 4, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  17. ^ Clough, Bethany (January 25, 2018). "After years of long lines, Fresno is getting another H&M clothing store". Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on July 25, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  18. ^ "Fashion Fair Mall opens forest themed children's play area". The Fresno Bee. December 12, 2008. p. G2. Retrieved July 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Hello Kitty Cafe, which attracts thousands, is returning to Fresno. Here's where it will be". Fresno Bee. July 16, 2022. Archived from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
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