Shopper's World - Replacement

Replacement

By the 1980s, the owners of Shopper's World, Melvin Simon and Robert Campeau, proposed to replace it with a a new enclosed, multi-floor structure with four anchor stores, as the original mall was undersized and outdated. The mall had the same basic layout and retail mix from the 1950s/1960s through this time. Construction on the new Shopper's World was slated to begin in late-1980s. However, Robert Campeau's Campeau Corporation, went bankrupt before plans could be finalized and the expansion begun. Adding to this, a series of lawsuits over the nature of the project between Simon and Campeau delayed development plans. In 1992, the mall was sold to the Sears real estate division, Homart Development Company. Homart, who also purchased the adjacent Natick Mall property, canceled the expansion plans for both mall complexes and developed two new concepts for a completely rebuilt, enclosed mall on the larger Shopper's World property and a power center at the Natick Mall location.

However, one of the major tenants, Filene's, had completely remodeled and expanded its Natick location as part of the former Natick Mall expansion plans and was unwilling to spend more capital on constructing a new building at Shopper's World. In response, Homart reversed the plans and developed the concepts that became the new Natick Mall and Shoppers' World. The original mall's tenants were moved in to the Shopper's World complex in 1993, and the mall torn down. A new, modern two-story Natick mall with over 200 stores was built and opened in late 1994. After tenants were moved to the new Natick Mall, the original Shopper's World closed in August, 1994, and demolition occurred in the following months.

The new Shopper's World was reopened as a modern, U-shaped power center in 1995. The new Shopper's World (the possessive "s" was changed to the singular form), a strip mall that features 778,476 sq ft (72,322.8 m2) of retail space. Stores include Best Buy, Toys "R" Us, John Harvard's Brew House, Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, Chipotle, The Paper Store, Nordstrom Rack, and many others. The old mall is missed by many local residents who have grown up going to the original mall.