Plano: Willow Bend Mall

[Proquest20]

Every time I go it seems like the majority of the crowd is mall walkers who buy nothing from any of the stores and parents who have kids to play at the Crayola Experience and the rubber playground. Maybe the furniture stores do well because they have such few locations and have outdoor entrances and their own courtyard, but as for the rest of them their time is limited.

[acclar11]

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/ret ... llow-bend/

As expected. Anthropologie is leaving for Stonebriar.

[Proquest20]

Which I find rather strange. I expected Anthropologie to leave Willow Bend, but it doesn’t really reflect the Stonebriar crowd very well. With their sister store at The Shops at Legacy, I would’ve hoped they moved there instead. But even The Shops at Legacy seems to be suffering since the opening of Legacy West (which also would’ve been a good location…), even that strip mall where Williams Sonoma is would’ve been better. Anthropologie has been trying to open in Frisco ever since Wade Park plans were released so I expected it.

[rono3849]

Anthropologie has exited Highland Park Village. I've read that they are relocating to the new Knox Street corridor area. I think the entire chain is in transition. I read that they were struggling and were looking for a new ownership.

[Proquest20]

Isn’t Knox Street leased by the same people as Highland Park Village? The move from Willow Bend to Stonebriar is still very curious, I’d prefer to see them move elsewhere.

[Proquest20]

Has anyone been to the Shops at Legacy recently? Last time I went it had a good amount of vacancies too, but still pretty active. I think the rest of the Willow Bend shops (Brooks Brothers, Lush, Allen Edmonds, RH, etc;) should all just move there.

[potatocoins]

Has anyone been to the Shops at Legacy recently? Last time I went it had a good amount of vacancies too, but still pretty active. I think the rest of the Willow Bend shops (Brooks Brothers, Lush, Allen Edmonds, RH, etc;) should all just move there.

I haven't, but I've been curious how that area is holding up now that you have Legacy West, Granite Park, and Grandscape all not too far away.

[Addison]

Has anyone been to the Shops at Legacy recently? Last time I went it had a good amount of vacancies too, but still pretty active. I think the rest of the Willow Bend shops (Brooks Brothers, Lush, Allen Edmonds, RH, etc;) should all just move there.

Isn't Brooks Brothers closing all of their stores?

[acclar11]

Has anyone been to the Shops at Legacy recently? Last time I went it had a good amount of vacancies too, but still pretty active. I think the rest of the Willow Bend shops (Brooks Brothers, Lush, Allen Edmonds, RH, etc;) should all just move there.

Isn't Brooks Brothers closing all of their stores?

They closed a bunch of stores when they filed bankruptcy in 2020, but I don't think they're closing any right now.

[Kelley USA]

AND, we have another NEW owner. This actually seems more promising though. They are going to finish the movie theatre ASAP which is nice. And they're local.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/ret ... it-opened/

[IcedCowboyCoffee]

They're talking the right talk, but the theatre still doesn't make a ton of sense to me.

[The_Overdog]

Right. There's one directly across the tollway 1 mile away. If the one inside the mall is actually successful, then the one outside will struggle, unless there are really enough people in the area to support two movie theaters.

[Proquest20]

Right! This movie theatre will need to have some damn nice amenities and good deals in order to compete. I’d much rather have an arcade or something of the type, although Pinstack or Dave & Busters at Stonebriar aren’t too far away. It would be so nice if they could finally fill the District though. Crayola Experience only attracts one type of consumer, and the clientele of Willow Bend was never geared towards that consumer, especially after Janie and Jack closed.
If Texas legalised gambling, maybe Willow Bend would have luck adding a casino resort right next door or attached to the food court, maybe then they could also re-attract all the high end tenants that left lol, jkjkjk. But it’s nice to dream about, any sort of hotel would very much be welcome.
I’m surprised Starwood never thought to add more athlesure stores to the property. You’d think with Equinox being added, that section of the mall would focus on it more, but nope. I’m sure Lululemon won’t want a store at Willow Bend with their store at Stonebriar being built, and with two other stores nearby at Legacy West and the Galleria, but even Finish Line or Adidas would fit in at that section of the mall. Hopefully new ownership understands that, because entering from the RH/MG&BW entrance, those would be the stores I’d expect to see.
Also, I feel like with the side by Macy’s where Crayola is being dead, most people who visit Crayola probably feel no need to walk the rest of the mall. That section needs to be leased much more than the rest of the mall, imo.

[Proquest20]

Also, their website got a redesign! It looked hideous under previous management, but now it's very user friendly and they have pictures associated with their tenants in the same way that the Galleria and NorthPark do.

One thing I'm a bit skeptical of is that I looked at their other properties, they literally have places like Ross and Target as tenants. This is probably their first time managing a "high end" property, so I really am curious as to how this turns out. It might end up like what's happening at the Galleria, where high end stores (Coach, etc;) are closing and local stores are opening.

[Proquest20]

So, the Psychedelic Robot exhibit is now open in the former Forever 21 space.

[Proquest20]

Some store named Coco La Rue is opening in the old Sephora space.

Now, I'm just going to go over some changes I'd want new management to have, although this is just what I'd do.
BUILD. A. ZARA. Capitalize off of the fact that the Galleria and NorthPark locations are always PACKED. They can use the old Forever 21 space once Psychedelic Robot is done, or the old Agaci space. Or, combine the old Image and Bootyqueen spaces with all the vacant spaces right above them, and have a two-level store. Personally, I'd use the old Agaci for a Uniqlo and the old Forever 21 for a Zara.
Add more athlesiure stores, preferably around the entrance from Equinox. Bring back Starbucks, whether it be in the food court, or in their own space in the mall, hopefully where Zodiac Time is right now. Speaking of the food court, they really need to get back to leasing that place. Popeyes, Subway, Chipotle, CAVA, Shake Shack, etc; would all be EXCELLENT options!
We need more new-to market stores as well. If they're not going to build an office tower, then I think that space that's attached to the food court could be converted into a Primark. I know entertainment options are important, though, so something like Round 1 would be very good, and would probably compliment the offerings of the Crayola Experience and the movie theatre, turning this mall into a sort of "entertainment" type of destination in the way Grapevine Mills is.
They need to finish leasing the District and construct a hotel like they originally planned on doing. At this point it doesn't even need to be "chef-driven concepts," although those have been really nice. Just upscale type of restaurants would be great. Actually, Spiral Diner has been expanding, and creating an upscale spin-off in Fort Worth. Both concepts would be terrific at Willow Bend, especially considering Plano's general lack of good vegan options.
Other stores I think would look good in Willow Bend: Mango, Savagexfenty, an Amazon retail store, B8ta, Adidas, MISS A, and Typo. Lush desperately needs to expand.

[Proquest20]

SHEIN will be having a three-day pop up later this month at the mall.
https://www.dallasnews.com/business/ret ... llow-bend/
Seems like a good sign. Hopefully this means more popular retailers are being courted by current management.