Last March in Los Angeles, Macy’s said goodbye to Downtown Los Angeles after 123 years. The closure confirmed the moribund climate in the neighborhood in recent months, hit by protests over ICE raids and its perennial problem of homelessness. Following the disappearance of budget fashion department store Fallas Paredes in 2022, fashion stores have been leaving the neighborhood in droves, with Acne Studios, Paul Smith, and Van’s recently. Hard hit by a deep retail crisis, Santa Monica also saw Nordstrom close its store in the Santa Monica Place shopping center this week. 

Although affected, the department store scene seems to be holding up in Los Angeles. Connected to traditionally touristy areas, department stores have adapted to the latest consumer trends by opening their doors to beauty salons, Michelin-starred restaurants, new gyms, movie theaters, art galleries, and arcades. A model which is inspired by LA’s malls, iconic shopping centers that function as open-air department stores and are reinventing themselves as places for living and leisure.

Department stores 

American department stores, which arrived in California in the 1940s, are still part of the Los Angeles landscape. From Macy’s to Bloomingdale’s, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and the latest Nordstrom, these brands have refined their offering and strategy.

Macy’s closes in Downtown

Originally from New York, the Macy’s department store in the Downtown neighborhood closed its doors last March. Located in The Bloc shopping center, formerly Broadway Plaza, Macy’s will be replaced in 2026 by the Ballers social club, which will offer 18 pickleball courts, four padel courts, and several golf simulators.

This is a major blow for Macy’s, which was founded in 1858 and experienced spectacular growth in Los Angeles in the 1960s, becoming the anchor store for several large malls. The closure was part of Macy’s company-wide ‘Bold New Chapter’ strategy, which called for the closure of approximately 150 underperforming stores across the country by 2026.

Despite this closure, there are still three Macy’s stores in Los Angeles today, located in the Beverly Center, Westfield Century City, and Westfield Culver City shopping malls. 

Positioned in the mass market and mid-market segments, Macy’s occupies a middle ground between popular retailers and luxury department stores (Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills). In Los Angeles, Macy’s at the Beverly Center occupies three floors dedicated to women’s and men’s fashion, with brands such as Calvin Klein, DKNY, Free People, Levi’s, Mango, Nike, Polo Ralph Lauren, and Tommy Hilfiger for women, and Dockers, Guess, Hugo Boss, Lacoste, and Michael Kors for men. 

The store also offers a wide selection of accessories, beauty brands and fragrances, jewelry and watches, children’s ready-to-wear, and home goods (on the third level) including furniture, bedding, and appliances.

Bloomingdale’s, a benchmark for luxury

The Bloomingdale’s brand was founded in 1861 in New York by brothers Joseph and Lyman Bloomingdale before being acquired by Federated Department Stores, now Macy’s, Inc. 

Despite the setback in San Francisco, where the brand had to close its historic Union Square store, Bloomingdale’s now has three stores in the greater Los Angeles area: the Sherman Oaks store in Sherman Oaks, the Glendale Galleria store in Glendale, and the flagship store at Westfield Century City in Los Angeles.

Bloomingdale’s has been there since April 2017, when the first phase of the Westfield Century City shopping center renovation was completed. Prior to that, the mall was home to a Broadway store, which opened in 1964, and then a Bullock’s store in 1976, both of which were converted to Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s after their owners were acquired by Federated Department Stores in the 1990s. Today, the shopping center is experiencing a new dynamic with attractive restaurants (Eataly, Din Tai Fung, Zinqué) and regular concerts bringing crowds.

Bloomingdale’s Century City is now spread over three floors, each dedicated to specific product categories. The first floor features a selection of beauty products, jewelry, and alteration and customization services. 

The second floor brings together women’s, men’s, and children’s fashion with a unique selection of premium and luxury brands ranging from Gucci to Balenciaga, Chanel, Saint Laurent, Theory, and Longchamp. Styling and personal shopping services are also available by appointment. Studio Services supports designers, customers, and stylists in finding wardrobes and props for feature films, commercials, and TV programs, and Café 59th & Lex serves salads, burgers, and sandwiches.

Finally, the top level brings together a wide selection of home products, including mattresses and custom bedding services. 

Nordstrom, luxury and avant-garde fashion

Founded in 1901 in Seattle by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin, Nordstrom first opened its doors as a shoe store before branching out into clothing sales in 1963 and becoming the full-service retailer we know today in 1971.

Nordstrom’s expansion into Los Angeles began in 1978 with the opening of its first store in Southern California, at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa. And the Nordstrom store located at The Grove in Los Angeles is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. It offers a wide range of luxury fashion products with brands such as Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Chloé, Givenchy, Gucci, Prada, and The Row, and its Space concept showcases emerging designers and avant-garde brands including Alexander Wang, Loulou De Saison, and Justine Clenquet jewelry.

Nordstrom at The Grove also offers a wide selection of beauty products and accessories, and in recent years has increased the number of specialist corners. These include a shop dedicated to manicures, the Brow Studio by Anastasia of Beverly Hills, the Nuface Sculpting Studio for a free 30-minute facelift effect, and styling, alteration, and monogramming services. It also houses the Bar Verde restaurant and the Ebar, where you can find coffee and snacks.

A unique feature of the brand, Nordstrom also has three Nordstrom Rack locations in Los Angeles: Downtown LA, Westfield Culver City, and Beverly Grove. The concept offers items from Nordstrom stores at prices reduced by 50 to 60% compared to Nordstrom’s original prices.

Nordstrom Rack also offers a selection of brand-name clothing, accessories, and shoes for the whole family, purchased specifically for Nordstrom Rack, with discounts ranging from 30 to 70% for most items. 

Finally, another innovative concept, Nordstrom Local, is also present in Brentwood, Manhattan Beach, and Newport Beach and is presented as a “hub center” offering the following services: “buy online and pick up in store,” returns and exchanges, personalized styling appointments, alterations, and custom tailoring.

Neiman Marcus, luxury down to the restyling of furs

Neiman Marcus is a luxury department store chain founded in 1914 in Dallas, Texas, by Herbert Marcus, Carrie Marcus Neiman, and A.L. Neiman. 

In Los Angeles, the Neiman Marcus flagship store opened in the heart of Beverly Hills in 1965. A shopping icon for Californians, it is now organized around three levels, starting with the ground floor and its selection of perfumes and luxury cosmetics brands, handbags, eyewear, and small leather goods.

The first level is dedicated to women’s fashion, with several hundred brands on offer, ranging from affordable ready-to-wear brands such as Sandro to designer and luxury brands such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Saint Laurent, Diane von Furstenberg, Dries van Noten, Elie Saab, Loewe, Ferragamo, and McQueen. There is also a wide selection of shoes and accessories, as well as personalized stylist and personal shopping services. Although the brand no longer sells furs in the store, it does offer fur storage, conditioning, and restyling services. 

The second floor is dedicated to men’s fashion, with a wide range of suits, shirts, shoes, and luxury accessories from brands such as David Beckham, Boss, Corneliani, Brunello Cucinelli, Fear of God, and Fendi. Finally, the third floor features home and decor brands, with bedding, tableware, decorative items, and high-end furniture. 

Neiman Marcus also has an on-site American restaurant, Mariposa, a cocktail bar called Bar on 4, and a café, Cafe On 3. 

The brand has other locations in Topanga and New Port Beach within the Fashion Island mall. 

Saks Fifth Avenue, the most luxurious services 

Saks Fifth Avenue was founded in 1867 by Andrew Saks in New York. 75 years later, the department store opened its doors for the first time in Los Angeles on Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, with the famous Paul R. Williams as the building’s architect. The elegant, modernist building reflected Californian glamour with its large, light-filled spaces. 

In 2024, Saks announced its move to a location just steps away from its historic building, at 9570 Beverly Wilshire, replacing the former Barneys New York. Similar in style to the main Hollywood Regency building, 9570 Wilshire Boulevard was completed in 1993 and renovated in 2020 by the HBC Group, which acquired the Barney’s brand. The award-winning architecture and design firm Arcadis transformed the store, bringing the distinct identity of the Saks Fifth Avenue brand to life while paying homage to the building’s history. 

With 136,000 square feet of retail space, the new six-story shopping center offers a luxurious selection of ready-to-wear clothing, shoes, handbags, jewelry, beauty products, and accessories from iconic luxury brands and emerging designer labels.

The ground floor features a spacious 5,000 square feet area dedicated to shoes, as well as an exceptional selection of handbags and leather goods. The second floor is the ultimate destination for fine jewelry in Beverly Hills, with limited edition and unique pieces from world-renowned jewelers such as Chopard, Graff, Lorraine Schwartz, Repossi, and Vhernier, among others. The third and fourth floors showcase collections from leading luxury brands, including Alexander McQueen, Bottega Veneta, Brunello Cucinelli, Celine, Thom Browne, Fendi, Loewe, Valentino, and many others. 

Saks Fifth Avenue also partnered with leading luxury fashion houses to create significant boutique spaces dedicated to each house throughout the store, including Chanel on the fifth floor and Dior, Gucci and Louis Vuitton on the second floor.
 
The new location also offers unique luxury services and highly personalized shopping experiences, including an expanded Fifth Avenue Club. It features 15 luxurious private styling suites and a team of expert Saks stylists, who provide customers with personal shopping and styling services. It also features an exclusive private outdoor terrace with stunning views of the Hollywood Hills. Additional luxury services include by-appointment only beauty treatment rooms, private jewelry viewings and an on-demand beverage service throughout the store.
 
Since this summer, Saks Fifth Avenue has expanded its ‘Saks Fifth Avenue Club’ concept to The London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills hotel and offers its luxury services on Sunset Strip. Saks puts the customer first by offering tailored and personalized services to meet—and even exceed—their individual shopping preferences, providing an in-house beauty space and delighting its elite clientele with marketable art installations. Some pieces from the Saks Fifth Avenue art collection are displayed with a QR code so that customers can browse the entire art gallery and view each piece in their own home.

Open-air shopping centers

With horizontal development, today’s new shopping centers function as open-air department stores. Inspired by Europe, The Grove, Americana at Brand, Malibu Country Mart, and Row DTLA are developing into new shopping villages, combining restaurants, cafés, gyms, and even arcades, just like department stores. 

The Grove, fashion and market

Designed by developer Rick J. Caruso, The Grove opened in 2002 with the idea of creating not just a shopping center but an open-air “urban village” that combines shopping, entertainment, and dining in an atmosphere inspired by European streets and Hollywood Art Deco style.

Designed as a small town within the city, The Grove is organized around a main pedestrian walkway with neoclassical facades, a central fountain animated by musical performances, and even a vintage trolley that runs between The Grove and the famous Original Farmer’s Market next door, where every self-respecting Angeleno has had lunch at least once in their life. Some critics describe it as a mini-Disneyland, but it successfully attracts families, industry professionals, and tourists alike.

From its launch, The Grove has focused on a mix of high-end and accessible brands, with a few prestigious names such as Nordstrom, Apple, Gucci, and jeweler David Yurman, but also more lifestyle and mainstream boutiques such as Zara, Sephora, Lululemon, Maje, Edikted, and more recently H&M. 

Americana at Brand, luxury residences and shopping

Americana at Brand is the “little brother” of The Grove in Los Angeles. It is based on the same concept developed by Rick Caruso in 2008 but is located east of Los Angeles, in Glendale. 

Like The Grove, Americana at Brand is not a closed mall but an open-air village designed to resemble a small town with its cobbled streets, European- and 1930s American-inspired facades, and festive atmosphere. A free trolley circulates around the large central esplanade with lawns, fountains, and seasonal lighting (especially at Christmas). Concerts and outdoor movie screenings attract families and children. 

More luxurious than The Grove, the fashion offerings include Chanel, David Yurman, Golden Goose, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Mejuri, Saint Laurent, Ray-Ban, Tiffany & Co., and will soon welcome the Omega watch brand. These are joined by more mainstream offerings from Alo Yoga, Lululemon, and H&M.

The shopping center also stands out for its residential dimension. Above the shops and around the esplanade are luxury apartments. It should be noted that a third shopping center run by Rick Caruso is located in Pacific Palisades. Partially destroyed by fires in January 2025, Palisades Village is currently undergoing renovation. Finally, Common at Calabassas is opened since 1998.

The Beverly Center, fashion, sports, and bowling

The Beverly Center was built on the site of a former amusement park, Beverly Park, nicknamed the “Kiddieland” of Los Angeles, which became very popular from 1943 to 1974. We owe its inauguration in 1982 to shopping mall developer A. Alfred Taubman. 

From the outset, it stood out as an eight-story vertical mall, perched above a huge parking lot in a massive building with futuristic architecture. Positioned as a fashion and luxury center targeting an urban and international clientele, straddling Los Angeles, West Hollywood, and Beverly Hills, it was quick to welcome department stores such as Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s, as well as Gucci, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, and Louis Vuitton.

Although it lost some of its luster in the early 1990s, the Beverly Center underwent extensive renovations in 2018, revealing a new façade, modernized interior spaces, and a refocused positioning on luxury, premium, and contemporary fashion. 

Its floors feature brands such as Balenciaga, Armani Exchange, Amiri, Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana, Ferragamo, Versace, Louis Vuitton, and more mainstream brands such as Michael Kors, Club Monaco, and Banana Republic. The Beverly Center is also home to the multi-brand store The Webster, created by Frenchwoman Laure Hériard Dubreuil. A dozen restaurants also share the space.

To diversify its clientele, the mall also opened its Lucky Strike space at the end of 2024, dedicated to arcade games and offering a 20-lane bowling alley. In July, the cult fitness brand Gold’s Gym opened its new gym. 

Westfield Century City, fashion, movies and food

Opening in 1964, Century City Shopping Center was built on land that used to belong to 20th Century Fox Studios. After a financial crisis, Fox sold part of its backlot in the early 1960’s to develpper William Zeckendorf which became the Century City district.
 
In the 1980s and 1990s, the mall went through several changes to stay competitive, adding more stores and modernizing. It shifted toward more fashion-forward brands to serve the affluent Westside customer base (Beverly Hills, Westwood, Brentwood, Hollywood). 
 
In 2002, Westfield Group acquired the mall, renaming it Westfield Century City. In 2015-2017, Westfield invested over $1 billion in a massive redevelopment led by interior designer Kelly Wearstler and design firms like Gensler. The renovation essentially rebuilt the mall from the ground up into a luxury lifestyle destination. 

Today, Westfield Century City is home to several department stores, including Bloomingdale’s, which replaced Macy’s in 2006, and Nordstrom, restaurants such as Eataly, and more than 200 fashion and accessory stores, including Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, Rolex, Zara, Apple, and Aritza. You can also dine at top-rated restaurants such as Din Tai Fung and Javier’s, and even go to the movies.

Westfield also has locations in Topanga and Culver City.

Malibu Country Mart, local spirit and bohemian vibe

Malibu Country Mart has a very different history from large modern malls such as The Grove or the Beverly Center. It is a Malibu landmark that cultivates a much more bohemian, artistic, and laid-back Californian vibe.

The mall opened in the early 1970s and is located in the heart of Malibu Civic Center, a stone’s throw from the beach and Pacific Coast Highway. At the time, Malibu was still a small coastal village frequented by surfers, artists, and a few stars seeking anonymity. 

Unlike enclosed malls, this open-air shopping center was designed as a Californian village with small wooden houses, patios, green spaces, and playgrounds for children. Its architecture blends ranch, Mediterranean, and bohemian chic styles.

A must-see spot for celebrities in the 1980s, the mall became the place where Californian fashion expressed itself with the arrival of many local designer brands. Today, it has around 65 shops, restaurants, and galleries, including James Perse, Oliver Peoples, John Varvatos, Chrome Hearts, Vince, and a few restaurants such as Tra di Noi, Taverna Tony, and John’s Garden. The recent reopening of the PCH, which was closed for six months due to fires, should boost traffic within the mall.

South Coast Plaza, temple of luxury

A veritable shopping institution in Costa Mesa, about an hour from Los Angeles, South Coast Plaza was the brainchild of the Segerstrom family, major orange growers in Orange County in the early 20th century. 

In the 1960s, visionary Henry T. Segerstrom decided to transform part of the family’s orchards into a modern shopping center to keep pace with the rapid urbanization of Orange County. In 1967, South Coast Plaza opened with Sears as its first department store, quickly joined by May Company and Bullock’s. 

In the 1970s, Segerstom realized that he needed to stand out by attracting prestigious European brands such as Chanel, Hermès, Gucci, and Cartier, which were rare at the time. As a result, South Coast Plaza became the largest luxury shopping center in the United States with more than 250 stores.

Today, South Coast Plaza covers more than 2.8 million square feet and attracts more than 20 million visitors a year, including a significant number of international tourists. All the world’s luxury brands are present, including Louis Vuitton, Berluti, Hermès, Chanel, Gucci, Cartier, and Rolex, as well as contemporary premium brands such as Ami and Acne Studios, chain brands such as Cos and H&M, and department stores such as Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue. Finally, more than 40 restaurants, including several Michelin-starred establishments, cater to shoppers.

Finally, it should be noted that the Segerstrom family has invested in culture since its inception, founding the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in 1986, located next to the mall and comprising an opera house, a concert hall, and theaters. It is also home to one of California’s most visited sculpture gardens, Isamu Noguchi’s California Scenario, and nearby is the OCMA, the Orange County Museum of Art.

Row DTLA, eclectic fashion and food trucks

Located between the Arts District and the Fashion District in Downtown, the Row DTLA site opened in 1917 as a railway warehouse and became one of the city’s largest food distribution centers. 

In the 2000s, a large part of the buildings became the headquarters and workshops of the American Apparel brand, but it went bankrupt in 2015, leaving the site vacant. Acquired by Atlas Capital Group and Shorenstein, the former industrial complex became a mixed-use complex housing offices for start-ups, communications agencies, and tech companies. The first shops quickly opened, including Aesop and the Bodega concept store, as well as the first restaurants.

In the years that followed, the Row became the symbol of the new cool, trendy, and creative Downtown. While traffic remains low on weekdays, the area is bustling every weekend, particularly for its Smorgasburg LA food market and its regular vintage market. Today, more than a dozen fashion boutiques are concentrated there, most of them featuring designer and independent brands such as Shades of Grey, Commn Market, Lvir, Gladys Tamez hats, and designer Johnny Cotta’s boutique. 

Art, object, and design galleries also occupy the space, as well as the Michelin-starred restaurant Kato.