Thursday, December 22, 2022

[UPDATE] Lenox Square and Phipps Plaza

While Nobu, the marquee name that most were looking forward to seeing open at Phipps Plaza has now opened, several other shops and restaurants are opening soon at the posh Buckhead mall, as well as at neighboring Lenox Square.  Newly updated signage as well as recently filed permits and real estate sources, indicate that several additional luxury retailers will either open new stores in Phipps Plaza or relocate existing area stores to the mall in the coming months.  

Nobu hotel and restaurant soft opened a few days before Thanksgiving and when we visited the restaurant soon after, it was already doing a brisk business.  A formal "ribbon cutting" occurred November 30 and will be followed by a "grand opening" in early 2023.  The property includes 152 hotel rooms and a 10,000 square foot Nobu restaurant.  

Jewelry retailer Cartier plans to relocate its existing store from the first floor Luxury Wing at Lenox Square to suite 1002E, a first floor space at Phipps Plaza.  Sources close to the jeweler indicate that the new store is slated to debut spring 2023.  Cartier is owned by Richemont, a Swiss luxury goods holding company that also owns Van Cleef & Arpels, Baume & Mercier, ChloĆ©, Dunhill, Montblanc, Piaget and Peter Millar, among others.  

A permit filed in October suggested that outerwear retailer Canada Goose would make its Atlanta debut with a signature boutique in suite 1074C also on the first floor of Phipps Plaza.   Permits filed with the City of Atlanta indicate that Canada Goose planned to spend an estimated $1.6 million on the buildout of its 3,530 square foot space.  According to a source close to the mall, however, the retailer "got ahead of itself" with a mall representative adding "there is currently no lease in place."  

Another permit filed in November indicates that Australian designer Zimmermann will open its first Atlanta area store with a nearly 2,000 square foot store planned for the first floor of Phipps Plaza. The retailer will occupy suite 1033, a space previously home to White House Black Market.  According to its website, Zimmerman currently operates 19 full line boutiques across the US, most of which are in Florida, Texas and New York.  

Jimmy Choo filed a permit December 21 for its long-rumored return to Phipps Plaza.  The permit indicates the retailer will open in suite 1030 F, a roughly 1,300 square foot space currently home to swimwear retailer Everything But Water.  Jimmy Choo's original Phipps Plaza boutique occupied suite 1014, a roughly 1,200 square foot space currently home to Robert Graham.  Jimmy Choo's return to Phipps Plaza will coincide with its closure at Buckhead Village District where it opened in 2014.   

Signage is now up where Fendi will open a new location with a reported emphasis on men's clothing on the first floor, just outside Saks Fifth Avenue.  The new Fendi will be in addition to the brand's existing store in the Luxury Wing of Lenox Square.  

Fragrance retailer Byredo is now open near Starbucks as is retailer AMIRI, which opened its flagship Atlanta boutique in October.  The new boutique spans nearly 6,000 square feet on the first floor of the Nordstrom wing.  

Dior and Alexander McQueen are both reportedly opening "soon." 

Chef Mimmo Alboumeh planned to bring his popular south Buckhead restaurant Botica to Phipps Plaza, but ToNeTo Atlanta has learned that he and Phipps Plaza owner Simon Property Group have mutually agreed to not move forward.  

Life Time opened their new 115,000 square foot "country club" December 8.  The new facility occupies five stories and features a dizzying array of options including nearly every piece of fitness equipment you could imagine, a spa, "kids academy," a cafe and even a rooftop pool. In addition to the huge fitness facility, Life Time also opened their second Atlanta area Life Time Work, a separate co-working space, which offers nearly 25,000 square feet of space for its members.  The first Atlanta area Life Time Work opened earlier this year in a former Publix at The Prado in Sandy Springs, adjacent to an existing Life Time.  

Celine, which like Dior, Givenchy, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co., and others, is owned by LVMH, is also reportedly in talks to open in Phipps Plaza, potentially in a space currently occupied by another retailer.  As with basically all of our questions, a Phipps Plaza representative replied "no comment" with regard to Celine's possible Phipps opening.   

All of the above-mentioned openings are in addition to the previously mentioned relocation of Hermes which is slated to take place in 2024.  It will be interesting to see how Lenox Square, Phipps Plaza, Buckhead Village District and Ponce City Market co-exist in the future given that whiles they were once rivals, they are now stepsiblings in a way.  You see, Simon completed its 50 per cent purchase of Buckhead Village District and Ponce City Market owner Jamestown December 19.  

Over at Lenox Square, Tiffany & Co opened its new boutique earlier this month which is in addition to company's longstanding boutique at Phipps Plaza.  

GAP returned to Lenox Square in November when they opened on the upper level between Fabletics and Diesel in a space previously occupied by Gap Kids and Baby Gap.  The new roughly 6,000 square foot store opened November 2 and according to a mall representative, is not just a temporary holiday store but a permanent lease.  Gap closed its previous roughly 7,800 square foot store this past February after which Canadian retailer Aritiza opened its place in May.  

Moose Knuckles, a Canadian outerwear retailer has opened but adjacent to its space, Savage X Fenty, the lingerie line from Rihanna, is delayed from its planned "Fall 2022" opening.  

Popeyes is expected to open in the coming weeks in the food court where it will join Shake Shack which opened this past August.  

A new cookie shop, Sugar Daddy, plans to open December 26 in a previously vacant kiosk near the far end of the food court, close to the mall exit.  The kiosk was first home to an ill-fated franchise of The Dapper Doughnut and later hosted a couple of short-term tenants.  Locally owned Sugar Daddy operates an existing kiosk on the upper level of Cumberland Mall near Smyrna.

When was the last time you visited Lenox Square or Phipps Plaza?  Are you pleased by the changes made at the two Buckhead malls? What mall or shopping center or do you find yourself patronizing most often? 

Please share your thoughts below  

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

It’s been maybe 6 years since I’ve been to Lenox Mall and that was to get a Mac at the Apple Store. I have very little desire for luxury shopping but have fun

Anonymous said...

It’s been maybe 6 years since I’ve been to Lenox/Phipps Mall and that was to get a Mac from the Apple Store. My desire for luxury shopping is limited these days to say the least as I would think that’s the case for many others. Have fun though those who can

Anonymous said...

What fool opens these sorts of high end retailers in the nuvo- ghetto????? Is this some sort of insurance fraud stuff??? You know dey goan flash mob annn liff this stuff right?

Anonymous said...

Feb 2020 was the last time I went to Phipps. I don't think I have been to Lenox since 2018. I used to love Phipps and worked close by. I have never gone to Lenox much. Buckhead has such a bad reputation now I don't shop there much anymore. Very sad.

Anonymous said...

The Jason's Deli @ old Disco Kroger was closed.

Anonymous said...

You have to be NUTS to make a purchase at Cartier and then walk to the parking deck at Lenox or Phipps.

Anonymous said...

With the increase in crime in that general area it’s no longer family friendly and safe so my family and friends no longer shop or go to that part of town.

Anonymous said...

Note everyone that it's Lenox SQUARE, not Lenox "Mall".
Lenox Square is indeed a mall, but "Mall" isn't part of its name.

And it's Phipps PLAZA, not Phipps "Mall".

Anonymous said...

Actually, it's Lenox Square Shopping Center. But I haven't been there in 20 years, and I live less than 2 miles away. There is absolutely nothing there that interests me, and with the current culture, vibe and demographic, well just forget it.

Alex said...

Haven't been to Lenox Mall in at least 10 years. I actually liked visiting the mall, but it has little to offer now. Last time I was at Phipps Mall was to see a movie, and that was probably in the mid-2000s.

Anonymous said...

Lenox Mall Lenox Mall Lenox Mall
Phipps Mall Phipps Mall Phipps Mall

Anonymous said...

Last time I was at Lenox I saw a 12 y/o wearing a ski mask in mid August weaving in and out traffic on Peachtree Rd on a Bird scooter. Everyone acted like it was totally normal too. Ahhh, the new Buckhead. I won't be back.

Anonymous said...

Take a deep breath… I don’t think anybody said that the word mall was part of the name - it’s more descriptive because lenox is a mall and Phipps is a mall. just like Buckhead is a neighborhood yet all the signs state “Buckhead neighborhood”.

Anonymous said...

say it don’t spray it!

Anonymous said...

Even though Buckhead deserves city hood it will never happen because the remaining part of Atlanta financially fiscally cannot sustain itself as a city. They can’t have the city of Atlanta be unsustainable. all the revenues from the Buckhead neighborhood absolutely subsidize the rest of the city of Atlanta. we’re lucky Brookhaven broke off when they did otherwise the problems in Buckhead today would be that much larger.

Anonymous said...

Moose Knuckles???? Hahahahhaa have they ever looked on Urban Dictionary??

Unknown said...

The racism is real in these comments.

Anonymous said...

nice to see phipps making a comeback

Jay Damoli said...

Yeah, it's really racist to point out facts. Maybe if a certain population didn't resort to crime in hugely disproportionate numbers, there'd be less "racism".

Anonymous said...

Facts can and do hurt some people's feelings. That's why we have political correctness and wokeness.

Anon said...

Like most here - surprised to see high end retailers going into a mall where people are murdered in the parking lot.

Anonymous said...

stay in polk county with your white hooded pals

Jay Damoli said...

No thanks, I live in City of Atlanta. Stay in your mom's basement.

Anonymous said...

The word is REALISM!

Anonymous said...

I'm black and facts are not racist. Take your feeling out and look at the truth. Stop crying! I'm tired of being looked at as a vote! Solve the crimes and issues colorblind.

Anonymous said...

Sure, just don’t follow us!

Anonymous said...

I went to Lenox square a few days before Christmas and it does have that “ghetto” clientele that was not there when I lived in Atlanta in the mid 1990s, I was not impressed at all.

Anonymous said...

I recently quit my job at Neiman Marcus after nearly 18 years. I must say Lenox Square started to noticeably decline long before Covid started, I would say the first time I noticed Lenox square’s crime and shoplifting dramatically increasing was back in 2016, and it slowly got worse and worse, until it reached its boiling point in the last two years. Neiman Marcus typical customer is long gone, and I mean the regular clientele that we had for decades stopped shopping there all within a one year period. Neiman Marcus calls the new customer base the “cash customer”. When Neiman Marcus starts catering to gang and thug types and starts adjusting their merchandise to clothing seen in rap videos you know you’re in deep deep trouble. But yea, Lenox and Phipps are not for families and are increasingly dangerous to shop at.

Anonymous said...

I noticed a big change at Lenox and Phipps when all of those rental units went up in Buckhead. The condos for the most part are fine and well regulated, but the apartments seem to have no standards for who can live there and use their facilities. I honestly can't blame people for not wanting apartments/affordable housing in their communities.

I also remember (pre-Covid) Erika Shields announcing that APD didn't have enough officers to respond to minor crimes in Buckhead and at Lenox. Well, an idiot could've told you that ignoring the minor crimes would lead to more serious crimes.

Poor city leadership and short sighted, "quick buck" development have destroyed Buckhead.

Anonymous said...

Back in the summer I was shopping at Bloomingdales at Lenox Square, I was in a public restroom in the back of Bloomingdales when a man came in the restroom as I was washing my hands and asked me for money so he could “catch the bus”, I tried to ignore him and then he started cursing, I was able to run out of the restroom and tell a clerk to call security but at this point the guy left the store. I was lucky nothing happened he could have assaulted me or robbed me in that small restroom. I will NEVER go back there and I live in Dunwoody!

Anonymous said...

There is less crime in Polk county than Buckhead, I can assure you of that

Anonymous said...

but more lynchings in polk though

Anonymous said...

I know 3 people whose cars were broken into at Lenox, each during 2021 - 2022. The APD does nothing about the break ins… they’re too busy trying to detect and prevent fire arms from being brought into the mall. Nor does anyone do anything about the rampant pot smoking and odor that fills the mall every Saturday from early afternoon onward. Both Lenox and Phipps are poorly managed, have horribly disgusting, dark and unsafe parking garages, and have drastically declined. Just look at the whole 2nd floor of Phipps —- empty! Layer in the changed demographic and thuggish culture of gangs and crime… No thanks! I’ll pass. Not surprised it’s a “cash customer” at NM now. Drug money. These are no longer safe places!

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