Natick Mall facts for kids
Interior of mall looking toward the Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom wing (2007)
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| Coordinates | 42°18′2″N 71°23′3″W / 42.30056°N 71.38417°W |
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| Address | 1245 Worcester Street, Natick, Massachusetts, US |
| Opening date | April 27, 1966 (original) October 12, 1994 (rebuilt) |
| Management | Brookfield Properties |
| Owner | Brookfield Property Partners |
| Architect |
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| No. of stores and services | 214 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 7 (6 open, 1 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 1,860,000 sq ft (173,000 m2) |
| No. of floors | 2 (closed 3rd floor in Wegmans) |
| Public transit access |  MWRTA: Routes 1, 4 and 11 |
The Natick Mall (once called the Natick Collection) is a large shopping mall in Natick, Massachusetts. It was the first indoor shopping mall in the Greater Boston area when it opened in 1966.
The original mall was torn down and a much bigger building took its place in 1994. It was made even larger in 2007. The Natick Mall is part of a big shopping area called the Golden Triangle. This area is in the middle of MetroWest.
With about 1,860,000 square feet of shopping space, the Natick Mall is the biggest mall in New England. It has 214 stores. Brookfield Property Partners owns the mall, and Brookfield Properties manages it.
As of 2025, the main stores (called "anchors") at Natick Mall include Macy's, Nordstrom, and the supermarket Wegmans. It also has a fun restaurant and arcade called Dave & Buster's. Some stores like Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus are closing in 2021. In the past, the mall had stores like Filene's, Jordan Marsh, J. C. Penney, and Sears.
Contents
History of the Natick Mall
The First Building (1966–1993)
The first Natick Mall was built by businessmen William Lane, Stephen Mugar, and John Brennan. Construction started in 1965. It connected two existing stores, Sears and Filene's.
The mall opened on April 27, 1966. It was a single-level shopping area with 30 stores. It was one of the first indoor malls in the Boston area. It was also one of the first built east of the Mississippi River.
Early stores included Woolworth's, Pray's Furniture, and a Hot Shoppes Cafeteria. There was also a large fountain area in front of Sears. Over time, some stores changed. For example, a food court was added in the early 1980s.
By 1985, new owners, S.R. Weiner & Associates and William Finard, bought the mall. They wanted to make it bigger and add a second level of stores. They also planned to add a Lord & Taylor store. However, they could not get enough money for the project, so it was put on hold. Filene's was able to update its store in 1991.
The Rebuilt Mall (1994–2006)
By the early 1990s, the Natick Mall felt old. Many shoppers started going to newer, bigger malls. In 1992, the Homart Development Company bought the Natick Mall. They planned to rebuild it.
Most of the original mall was torn down in June 1993. Only the Filene's store remained. A new, two-story mall was built in its place. It opened on October 12, 1994.
The new mall had Filene's, Jordan Marsh, and a rebuilt Sears. A new Lord & Taylor store also opened. In 1996, the Jordan Marsh store became a Macy's.
Later, in 2006, Macy's moved into the Filene's space. This happened when Macy's and Filene's merged. A J. C. Penney store then opened in the old Jordan Marsh/Macy's spot on March 9, 2007.
Big Changes and Expansion (2007–2009)
In late 2006, the mall started a big renovation and expansion project. It even tried to change its name to just "Natick." But the town didn't like that, so it was renamed the Natick Collection.
The first part of the project updated the existing mall. It also added a new section on the northeast side. This new part brought in two new main stores: Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. It also added almost 100 new stores. This new section opened on September 7, 2007.
More construction happened in 2008. A Crate & Barrel store was built, and a California Pizza Kitchen moved to a new spot. An American Girl store and restaurant also opened.
In October 2009, another part of the expansion opened. It was called The Promenade at Natick Collection. A Cheesecake Factory restaurant opened there soon after. The mall also added an eight-story parking garage. These changes made the Natick Collection one of the largest malls in the country. It became the biggest in New England.
Recent Years (2010–Present)
In July 2011, the mall changed its name back to the Natick Mall. This was because people in the area preferred the original name.
In 2015, the J. C. Penney store announced it would close. On August 4, 2015, the supermarket chain Wegmans said it would take over that space. This was a new idea for malls, bringing in different types of stores.
Wegmans opened on April 29, 2018. It was the first Wegmans to have multiple levels and entrances inside a shopping mall. It also had a full-service restaurant inside.
In 2018, the two-floor Sears store became smaller. Dave & Buster's, a restaurant and video arcade, took over the second floor. Dave & Buster's opened on June 24, 2019. However, Sears later announced it would close its store completely. It closed in January 2019.
An online store called Wayfair opened a temporary "pop-up" store for the holidays in late 2018. It closed in early 2019.
On February 1, 2019, the American Girl store announced it would close. On December 7, 2019, the Blue Dalia Restaurant and Tequila Bar inside Wegmans also closed.
In June 2020, a new interactive gaming business called Level 99 announced it would open in part of the former Sears building in 2021.
In August 2020, Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus both announced they would be closing their stores. Lord & Taylor closed on February 27, 2021, and Neiman Marcus will close in 2021. Wayfair also closed its store on December 31, 2020.
Main Stores at Natick Mall
| Name | No. of floors |
Year opened |
Year closed |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave & Buster's | 1 | 2019 | N/A | Took over part of the second floor of Sears |
| Filene's | 2 | 1965 | 2006 | |
| J. C. Penney | 3 | 2007 | 2015 | Replaced the first Macy's store |
| Jordan Marsh | 3 | 1994 | 1996 | |
| Level 99 | 1 | 2021 | N/A | Will take over part of the second floor of Sears |
| Lord & Taylor | 2 | 1994 | 2021 | Closed on February 27, 2021 |
| Macy's | 3 | 1996 | 2006 | Replaced Jordan Marsh |
| 2 | 2006 | N/A | Replaced Filene's | |
| Neiman Marcus | 2 | 2007 | 2021 | Closed in 2021 |
| Nordstrom | 2 | 2007 | N/A | |
| Sears | 2 | 1965 | 2019 | |
| Wegmans | 2 | 2018 | N/A | Replaced J. C. Penney |
Mall Design and Look
The Natick Mall has two levels and is shaped like a "T." It covers about 1,860,000 square feet. When it was expanded in the late 2000s, designers used lots of natural light. This helps make the mall feel open and bright.
The curved ceiling of the mall was inspired by the meaning of the name Natick. In the Massachusett language, Natick means "place of rolling hills." Many parts of the mall's design also feature the leaves of the birch tree.
The expansion also added an underground parking garage. The lower level of the mall has shiny porcelain tile floors. The upper level uses engineered hardwood floors. You'll see lots of glass decorations throughout the mall. The outside of the Neiman Marcus store is covered with 80-foot curved stainless steel panels. These panels are in different shades of brown and are meant to look like a woman's dress.
Who Owns the Mall
Homart Development Corporation, which was part of Sears, owned the Natick Mall for a while. Then, General Growth Properties (GGP) bought Homart in December 1995. At that time, the Natick Mall was worth about $265 million.
Later, Brookfield Property Partners bought GGP. In August 2018, the mall's management was given to Brookfield Properties, which is a part of Brookfield Property Partners.
