Phipps refines upscale image

H.M. Cauley
For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Planning for the holidays at Phipps Plaza has gone beyond decorated trees and hanging boughs. The center, like Lenox Square across Peachtree Road, had been remixing its blend of stores to position itself as the chief shopping destination for high-end buyers.

The Simon Property Group, which owns both Buckhead malls, has been busy wooing boutique and designer stores that are usually found on fashionable shopping strips in New York and Los Angeles.

"In the last year, we've had several additions of unique retailers that traditionally shy away from the mall environment," said Tisha Maley, assistant vice president of leasing for Simon. "These are stores more traditionally found on the open street. But having them here definitely gives the malls more of a boutique shopping experience, and I think they had lost that just a bit."

One of those typically mall-wary stores is Intermix, a New York-based retailer noted for its hip, cool styles that selected Phipps for its first entry into the metro Atlanta market.

"Atlanta has been on our radar for the past couple of years, but we were continuing to build our brand and waiting to solidify the perfect location," said Intermix CEO Khajak Keledjian. "By opening in Phipps, we are able to reach a fashionable customer who is already coming in to shop at some of the larger department stores such as Saks, or single vendor retailers such as Gucci. And Phipps has been undergoing a major overhaul, and really attracting more contemporary retailers. Younger, more trend-oriented consumers are being reintroduced to Phipps."

Two other Phipps coups in the past few months were the opening of designer niches for Jimmy Choo and Tory Burch.

"This Tory Burch store is the first one to open in a mall," Maley said. "She sells women's fashions that have been very popular in New York and even featured on 'Oprah.' She also has a store in Los Angeles, so we're her third store, but the only one in a mall."

The store is stocked with the designer's signature line of classic clothing priced from $45 for a tank top to $2,000 for a coat.

Shoe designer Jimmy Choo opened a 1,300-square-foot boudoir-inspired boutique at Phipps in May, after gaining worldwide fame on the feet of the stars of "Sex in the City."

"They did him a great service by wearing his shoes," Maley said. "And it makes sense that a company like that wants to be in here. The city is known for its fashion sense; women care about how they dress. And that has more retailers looking here. It also comes down to Atlanta and to Buckhead and what Buckhead means to shopping. It's a combination of tourism, hotels, office and the mass of buyers."

Simon also has reworked the location of stores and made changes to appeal to each mall's specific buyer profile.

"For instance, we moved Abercrombie & Fitch to Lenox because it's a better fit," Maley said. "The Lenox shopper is very brand conscious and label-aware. They go for Gap, Louis Vuitton and big national brands. Phipps is more about fashion sensibility. Buyers are looking for boutiques and unusual finds."

Lenox has seen the arrival of designer shops for Kate Spade, Adrienne Vittadini and Oakley, known for its selection of high-end sunglasses. Last week, a 3,500-square-foot Adidas store opened, stocked with sports-inspired clothing aimed at urban hipsters.

"This is our very first entry into a mall," said Julie Schoenborn, who scouts locations and opens new stores for Adidas. "But after looking at Atlanta and seeing the sorts of consumers who shop here, it was a good place for us to be. There's an entire consumer base for us hanging out here."