Want a Coach clutch or fashions from Barneys New York? Sawgrass Mills will have all that and more at its upscale outlet addition taking shape on the center’s southern end.
The 110,000-square-foot open-air complex, called the Colonnade, has been in the works for several years. Barring unexpected events — like a rash of hurricanes — it will open before the holiday shopping season is in full swing.
Outlet tenants onboard include Barneys and Coach along with Cole Haan, Escada Company Store, Salvatore Ferragamo, Hugo Boss Factory Store, Max Mara, Miss Sixty, St. John Knits and Crate & Barrel. It will be Crate & Barrel’s first Florida outlet store.
Shoppers will be able to walk directly into stores without entering the mall. A walkway with trees, plants and fountains will lead to a trio of new restaurants: Bellagio, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, and Florida’s first Grand Lux CafM-i, a spin-off by The Cheesecake Factory chain. Coco’s Day Spa will be nearby for those worn to a frazzle from all the shopping.
Meanwhile, Neiman Marcus’ Last Call will move from the inside the mall to a renovated freestanding building where Crate & Barrel will also be located.
With the new stores and European-themed architecture, the mall is broadening its appeal, said Erick Collazo, a Mills Corp. executive who’s overseen the project. And it will cater to the residential developments that have grown up around the center.
“When you look at what’s happening in the suburbs, there is an unmet demand for couture premium outlet shopping,” he said.
The high-end outlets come as more working- and middle-class shoppers aspire to goods once considered exclusive to the wealthy, experts say.
“American consumers are increasingly aware of and interested in high style and high-priced brands,” said Wendy Liebmann, a principal at WSL Strategic Retail, a New York-based marketing and retail consultancy firm. She added that mixing value-priced and high-end stores can work.
“It’s viewed as a legitimate way on the business side to get rid of last year’s or last season’s inventory, and viewed as a legitimate way for consumers to have access to all of these brands,” she said.
New Jersey-based retail consultant Kurt Barnard said that upscale outlets like the Colonnade appeal to people who are careful with their money, but particular about their purchases.
“It’s people who appreciate good things and good quality,” he said.
Owned by Arlington, Va.-based The Mills Corp., Sawgrass Mills opened in 1990 and has expanded several times since. Meanwhile, the mall has become a local shopping center for nearby residents, including high-income earners who live in Coral Springs, Davie and Weston, Collazo said. Sawgrass is a tourist destination and draws Florida shoppers from as far away as Naples and the Florida Keys.
Customers are eager to see the new addition.
“I think it’s wonderful,” said Lila Lavine, perusing Nordstom Rack’s offerings Tuesday with her friend Lois Hopfenberg, both of Boynton Beach.
Lavine said she shops Sawgrass for bargains every time she visits a doctor who works nearby.
“My mother taught me to buy the best brands at discount prices,” she said.
Karen-Janine Cohen can be reached at or 954-356-4668
