Fashion Island
Encyclopedia
Fashion Island is an upscale
open-air lifestyle center in Newport Beach, California
. Fashion Island is owned by The Irvine Company.
, the mall featured four department stores: Buffum's
, J. W. Robinson's, The Broadway
, and J.C. Penney
. These four initial buildings were designed by architects William Pereira
and Welton Becket
, and were flanked by several smaller stores. The Spanish architectural theme which would later define the mall was evident in the Robinson's building. In the late 1970s, Bullocks Wilshire
(which later became I. Magnin
) and Neiman Marcus
were added. In the early 1980s, J.C. Penney moved out, and the building it occupied was reconstructed and reopened as "Atrium Court", which contained numerous smaller shops and a food court on the lower level.
The southwest entrance to Robinson's features a bronze wind-chime sculpture by mural artist Tom Van Sant
, installed in September 1967, that was recorded by the Guinness Book of Records as the world's largest wind chime. (Possibly supplanted by Eureka Springs, Ark. in 2007.)
In 1988, the center underwent a major expansion and renovation based on the design of Jon Jerde
, adding the Island Terrace Food Court, an eight-screen movie theater, and three new avenues of shops, all of which converge in a circular courtyard with an animated fountain that shoots jets of water up to 30 feet (9.1 m) high. This fountain is known as the "Iris Fountain" because of the radial-leaves pattern of its marble lining coupled with the jets of water that suggests the iris
plant.
In 1990, the Bullocks Wilshire
store became an I. Magnin
. Federated Department Stores
, which owned I. Magnin closed the chain in the mid 1990s, and the store was replaced with a Bullock's Women's Store
. When Federated shuttered the Bullock's chain, the store was replaced again by Macy's
as a Macy's Women's Store. Buffum's closed in 1991, and its space was later subdivided into smaller stores. After the consolidation of J. W. Robinson's and May Company California, the Robinson's store became a Robinsons-May
in 1993. The Broadway
, whose parent company had been purchased by Federated was done away with in 1996, and was replaced by one of the first Bloomingdale's
stores on the West Coast.
In the early 2000s the mall underwent additional minor renovations resulting in the alteration and replacement of landscape elements, building facades, outdoor furniture ,and floor materials to better reflect the Mediterranean theme. Included in this renovation was the installment of a carousel and a new wing with restaurants and shops, although the carousel was removed in January 2010 as part of major renovations of the center.
The Federated-May merger in 2006, greatly affected Fashion Island, resulting in the closure and demolition of the 80000 square feet (7,432.2 m²) Macy's Women's Store and conversion of the former Robinsons-May into a full-line Macy's
store.
On January 29, 2008, Nordstrom
announced that it had signed a letter of intent to open a 138000 sq ft (12,820.6 m²) store in 2010 in the former Macy's Women's Store location. On April 16, 2010 Nordstrom Fashion Island officially opened.
In 2009 the Irvine Company
began a $100 million renovation of the mall and is changing the Spanish style to an Italian style.
. About a week before Christmas, every year, the tree is lit, preceded by extravagant holiday performances. The trees are taken from a private timber area near Mount Shasta
, and shipped to Fashion Island in several pieces, which are then re-assembled using steel rods and a large crane.
Since 1983, the tree at Fashion Island has generally been the nation's tallest. The M Resort
held this distinction for 2009.
Luxury good
Luxury goods are products and services that are not considered essential and associated with affluence.The concept of luxury has been present in various forms since the beginning of civilization. Its role was just as important in ancient western and eastern empires as it is in modern societies...
open-air lifestyle center in Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach, incorporated in 1906, is a city in Orange County, California, south of downtown Santa Ana. The population was 85,186 at the 2010 census.The city's median family income and property values consistently place high in national rankings...
. Fashion Island is owned by The Irvine Company.
History
Opened in 1967 as part of Newport CenterNewport Center
Newport Center is a business, shopping, and entertainment district located on a high bluff overlooking Newport Harbor in Newport Beach, California. Newport Center is also famously dubbed "Fashion Island" amongst locals. It was created in the early 1960s as part of William Pereira's master plan for...
, the mall featured four department stores: Buffum's
Buffum's
Buffum's was a chain of Long Beach, California-based department stores. Founded by brothers Charles Abel Buffum and Edwin E. Buffum in 1904, it grew slowly over the years to a total of 16 stores in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties at the time of its closure in 1990.Over the years, the...
, J. W. Robinson's, The Broadway
The Broadway
The Broadway was a mid-level department store chain headquartered in Los Angeles, California, United States of America. Founded in 1896 by English born Arthur Letts, Sr., who later went on to develop Holmby Hills, The Broadway became one of the dominant retailers in Southern California and the...
, and J.C. Penney
J.C. Penney
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. is a chain of American mid-range department stores based in Plano, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas. The company operates 1,107 department stores in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. JCPenney also operates catalog sales merchant offices nationwide in many...
. These four initial buildings were designed by architects William Pereira
William Pereira
William Leonard Pereira was an American architect from Chicago, Illinois, of Portuguese ancestry who was noted for his futuristic designs of landmark buildings such as the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco...
and Welton Becket
Welton Becket
Welton Becket was an architect who designed many buildings in Los Angeles, California.Becket was born in Seattle, Washington and graduated from the University of Washington program in Architecture in 1927 with a Bachelor of Architecture degree .He settled in Los Angeles in 1933 and formed a...
, and were flanked by several smaller stores. The Spanish architectural theme which would later define the mall was evident in the Robinson's building. In the late 1970s, Bullocks Wilshire
Bullocks Wilshire
Bullocks Wilshire, located at 3050 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, is a 230,000-square foot Art Deco building.-Design:...
(which later became I. Magnin
I. Magnin
I. Magnin & Company was a San Francisco, California-based high fashion and specialty goods luxury department store. Over the course of its existence, it expanded across the West into Southern California and the adjoining states of Arizona, Oregon, and Washington...
) and Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus, formerly Neiman-Marcus, is a luxury specialty retail department store operated by the Neiman Marcus Group in the United States. The company is headquartered in the One Marcus Square building in Downtown Dallas, Texas, and competes with other department stores such as Saks Fifth...
were added. In the early 1980s, J.C. Penney moved out, and the building it occupied was reconstructed and reopened as "Atrium Court", which contained numerous smaller shops and a food court on the lower level.
The southwest entrance to Robinson's features a bronze wind-chime sculpture by mural artist Tom Van Sant
Tom Van Sant
Tom Van Sant is a sculptor, painter, and conceptual artist. In his professional work he has executed over sixty major sculpture and mural commissions for public spaces around the world...
, installed in September 1967, that was recorded by the Guinness Book of Records as the world's largest wind chime. (Possibly supplanted by Eureka Springs, Ark. in 2007.)
In 1988, the center underwent a major expansion and renovation based on the design of Jon Jerde
Jon Jerde
Jon Jerde is an American architect based in Venice, California, Founder & Chairman of , a design architecture and urban planning firm that pioneered the concept of placemaking and "experience architecture;" and has created multiple award-winning commercial developments around the globe...
, adding the Island Terrace Food Court, an eight-screen movie theater, and three new avenues of shops, all of which converge in a circular courtyard with an animated fountain that shoots jets of water up to 30 feet (9.1 m) high. This fountain is known as the "Iris Fountain" because of the radial-leaves pattern of its marble lining coupled with the jets of water that suggests the iris
Iris (plant)
Iris is a genus of 260-300species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the Greek word for a rainbow, referring to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species...
plant.
In 1990, the Bullocks Wilshire
Bullocks Wilshire
Bullocks Wilshire, located at 3050 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, is a 230,000-square foot Art Deco building.-Design:...
store became an I. Magnin
I. Magnin
I. Magnin & Company was a San Francisco, California-based high fashion and specialty goods luxury department store. Over the course of its existence, it expanded across the West into Southern California and the adjoining states of Arizona, Oregon, and Washington...
. Federated Department Stores
Federated Department Stores
Macy's, Inc. is a department store holding company and owner of Macy's and Bloomingdale's department stores. Macy's Inc.'s stores specialize mostly in retail clothing, jewelery, watches, dinnerware, and furniture....
, which owned I. Magnin closed the chain in the mid 1990s, and the store was replaced with a Bullock's Women's Store
Bullock's
Bullock's was a department store based in Los Angeles, California. The company operated full-line department stores all across California, with some stores in Arizona and Nevada. Bullock's also operated the more upscale Bullocks Wilshire in parts of Southern California.- History :Bullock's was...
. When Federated shuttered the Bullock's chain, the store was replaced again by Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
as a Macy's Women's Store. Buffum's closed in 1991, and its space was later subdivided into smaller stores. After the consolidation of J. W. Robinson's and May Company California, the Robinson's store became a Robinsons-May
Robinsons-May
Robinsons-May was a chain of department stores operating in Southern California, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada, previously with headquarters in North Hollywood, California...
in 1993. The Broadway
The Broadway
The Broadway was a mid-level department store chain headquartered in Los Angeles, California, United States of America. Founded in 1896 by English born Arthur Letts, Sr., who later went on to develop Holmby Hills, The Broadway became one of the dominant retailers in Southern California and the...
, whose parent company had been purchased by Federated was done away with in 1996, and was replaced by one of the first Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's is an American department store owned by Macy's, Inc. .Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman G. Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side...
stores on the West Coast.
In the early 2000s the mall underwent additional minor renovations resulting in the alteration and replacement of landscape elements, building facades, outdoor furniture ,and floor materials to better reflect the Mediterranean theme. Included in this renovation was the installment of a carousel and a new wing with restaurants and shops, although the carousel was removed in January 2010 as part of major renovations of the center.
The Federated-May merger in 2006, greatly affected Fashion Island, resulting in the closure and demolition of the 80000 square feet (7,432.2 m²) Macy's Women's Store and conversion of the former Robinsons-May into a full-line Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
store.
On January 29, 2008, Nordstrom
Nordstrom
Nordstrom, Inc. is an upscale department store chain in the United States, founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin. Initially a shoe retailer, the company today also sells clothing, accessories, handbags, jewelry, cosmetics, fragrances, and in some locations, home furnishings...
announced that it had signed a letter of intent to open a 138000 sq ft (12,820.6 m²) store in 2010 in the former Macy's Women's Store location. On April 16, 2010 Nordstrom Fashion Island officially opened.
In 2009 the Irvine Company
Irvine Company
The Irvine Company is a privately held real estate development company based in Newport Beach, Orange County, Southern California. The corporate center of the company lies in Newport Center. A large portion of its operations are centered in and around the City of Irvine, a planned city of 250,000...
began a $100 million renovation of the mall and is changing the Spanish style to an Italian style.
Anchors
- Bloomingdale'sBloomingdale'sBloomingdale's is an American department store owned by Macy's, Inc. .Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman G. Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side...
187534 sq ft (17,422.5 m²) - Bloomingdale's Home StoreBloomingdale'sBloomingdale's is an American department store owned by Macy's, Inc. .Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman G. Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on Manhattan's Lower East Side...
62000 sq ft (5,760 m²) - Macy'sMacy'sMacy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
224219 sq ft (20,830.6 m²) - Neiman MarcusNeiman MarcusNeiman Marcus, formerly Neiman-Marcus, is a luxury specialty retail department store operated by the Neiman Marcus Group in the United States. The company is headquartered in the One Marcus Square building in Downtown Dallas, Texas, and competes with other department stores such as Saks Fifth...
153000 sq ft (14,214.2 m²) - NordstromNordstromNordstrom, Inc. is an upscale department store chain in the United States, founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin. Initially a shoe retailer, the company today also sells clothing, accessories, handbags, jewelry, cosmetics, fragrances, and in some locations, home furnishings...
138000 sq ft (12,820.6 m²)
Restaurants
- Canaletto Ristorante Veneto
- Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar
- Roy'sRoy'sRoy's is a restaurant chain specializing in Hawaiian fusion and Asian fusion cuisine, with a focus on seafood. Roy's is headquartered in Tampa, Florida....
- Rustica California Wine Bistro
Christmas tree
The large courtyard outside the Bloomingdale's building is occupied annually by a large Christmas treeChristmas tree
The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...
. About a week before Christmas, every year, the tree is lit, preceded by extravagant holiday performances. The trees are taken from a private timber area near Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta is located at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California and at is the second highest peak in the Cascades and the fifth highest in California...
, and shipped to Fashion Island in several pieces, which are then re-assembled using steel rods and a large crane.
Since 1983, the tree at Fashion Island has generally been the nation's tallest. The M Resort
M Resort
M Resort Spa Casino is a luxury boutique hotel and casino on approximately at the southeast corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and St. Rose Parkway , in Henderson, Nevada. It is located near the affluent neighborhood of Southern Highlands and the proposed Southern Highlands Resort. The hotel includes...
held this distinction for 2009.