View source for The Florida Mall

{{short description|Shopping mall in Orlando, Florida, United States}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2011}}
{{Infobox shopping mall
| name = The Florida Mall
| logo = Thefloridamall.svg
| logo_width = 250px
| image = The Florida Mall west entrance near Macy's.jpg
| image_width = 250px
| caption = One of the mall's entrances
| location = [[Orange County, Florida]], United States
| coordinates = {{Coord|28.44592|-81.39554|display=inline,title}}
| opening_date = {{start date|1986|03|12}}
| developer = [[Edward J. DeBartolo Jr.|Edward J. DeBartolo Corp.]] and JCP Realty, Inc.
| manager = [[Simon Property Group]]
| owner = [[Simon Property Group]] (50%)
| number_of_stores = 300
| number_of_anchors = 12 (11 open, 1 vacant)
| floor_area = {{convert|1,699,571|sqft|m2|-2|abbr=on}}<ref name=factsheet>{{cite web|url=https://business.simon.com/mall/leasingsheet/Florida_Mall_Brochure.pdf|title=The Florida Mall Fact Sheet|publisher=[[Simon Property Group]]|access-date=August 3, 2018}}</ref>
| floors = 1 (2 in Sears, Macy's, JCPenney, Dillard's, Old Navy, H&M, Zara, Crayola Experience, former Forever 21, and Primark, 12 in Florida Hotel)
| website = [http://www.simon.com/mall/the-florida-mall Official website]
| publictransit = {{bus icon|12px|Local Transit}} [[File:LYNX transportation logo.svg|50px|Lynx|link=Lynx (Orlando)]] 7, 37, 42, 107, 108, 111, 418, 441 at the Florida Mall SuperStop
| parking = [[Parking lot]], [[valet parking]] with 9,220 spaces<ref name=about/>
| address = 8001 South [[Orange Blossom Trail]]<br>Orlando, FL 32809
}}
'''The Florida Mall''' is a super regional enclosed [[shopping mall]] located south of [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]] in unincorporated [[Orange County, Florida]], United States, on the southeast corner of [[Orange Blossom Trail]] and [[Florida State Road 482|Sand Lake Road]]; it opened in 1986. The mall features [[JCPenney]], [[Dillard's]], [[Macy's]], [[Dick's Sporting Goods]], [[Primark]], and [[Sears]], in addition to the [[Crayola Experience]], along with junior anchors [[H&M]], [[Zara (retailer)|Zara]], and [[Old Navy]].
There is one vacant anchor store that was once [[Forever 21]]. There is also one anchor store under construction that is set to be a [[Round One Corporation|Round1]] arcade.

The facility was developed by a Joint Venture of [[Edward J. DeBartolo, Jr.|Eddie DeBartolo]] of DeBartolo Realty & JCP Realty, Inc. (Subsidiary of J. C. Penney Company) starting in 1979-1984; it is currently managed by [[Simon Property Group]], which owns 50%, having fallen to Simon following the 1996 merger of Simon and DeBartolo Realty into Simon DeBartolo Group. With {{convert|1,699,571|sqft|m2|-2|abbr=on}} of [[gross leasable area]] and 294 retailers,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20180804045810/https://business.simon.com/mall/leasingsheet/Florida_Mall_Brochure.pdf "The Florida Mall Fact Sheet" (PDF).] Simon Property Group. Archived August 4, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2024.</ref> it is one of the largest single-story malls in the United States and the largest mall in [[Central Florida]].

==Location==
[[File:The Florida mall.jpg|left|thumb|200px|Aerial view of The Florida Mall]]
The Florida Mall is located in an unincorporated area of [[Orange County, Florida]] south of the city of [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]]. The mall is close to [[Orlando International Airport]] and many other Orlando attractions including [[Universal Orlando Resort]], [[Walt Disney World]], [[SeaWorld Orlando]], and [[International Drive]]. The Florida Mall is located at the southeast corner of the intersection between [[U.S. Route 17 in Florida|US 17]]/[[U.S. Route 92|US 92]]/[[U.S. Route 441 in Florida|US 441]] (Orange Blossom Trail) and [[Florida State Road 482|SR 482]] (Sand Lake Road) and is situated near the junction of [[Florida State Road 528|SR 528]] (Beachline Expressway) and [[Florida's Turnpike]].<ref name=factsheet/><ref name=about/>

==Description==
The Florida Mall has a [[gross leasable area]] of {{convert|1718000|sqft|m2}} and contains over 250 stores, making it the largest mall in [[Central Florida]]. The mall is one level and is anchored by [[Dillard's]], [[Macy's]], [[JCPenney]], [[Sears]], [[Dick's Sporting Goods]], and the [[Crayola Experience]]. Attached to the mall is The Florida Hotel & Conference Center, which contains 511 rooms. The Florida Mall contains numerous smaller stores and entertainment venues including the only [[American Girl]] and [[Disney Store]] locations in the Orlando area. The mall offers various dining options including 25 quick-service restaurants and 8 sit-down restaurants. The Florida Mall features a {{convert|105000|sqft|m2|adj=on}} [[food court|Dining Pavilion]] that contains a total of 25 restaurants. The mall offers various services to shoppers including [[valet parking]], [[Bureau de change|currency exchange]], and package and baggage check. The Florida Mall attracts over 20 million visitors annually, including domestic and international tourists to the Orlando area.<ref name=factsheet/><ref name=about>{{cite web|title=About The Florida Mall|publisher=The Florida Mall|url=http://www.simon.com/mall/the-florida-mall/about|access-date=August 3, 2018}}</ref> As of June 2025, the mall is also home to one of only 8 (soon to be 5) [[Sears]] stores remaining in the United States.

==History==
[[File:Florida Mall 12.JPG|thumb|right|Entrance to the mall's food court in 2015]]
The mall opened on March 12, 1986, with [[Sears]], [[JCPenney]], [[Belk]] and the [[Crowne Plaza]] hotel (built by E.J. DeBartolo and owned in partnership with Pratt Hotel Corporation of Dallas Texas), followed by [[Robinson's of Florida|Robinson's]] in September of that year.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.labelscar.com/florida/florida-mall|title=Florida Mall; Orlando, Florida - Labelscar: The Retail History Blog|date=March 8, 2010|work=Labelscar: The Retail History Blog|access-date=May 28, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref> Many of the mall’s design features were borrowed from other DeBartolo malls like [[Aventura Mall]] for many expansions and [[Coral Square]] for its layout and [[space frame]] ceiling. A year later, store acquisitions and consolidations started varying the anchor lineup. Robinson's converted to Maison Blanche in August 1987, and the Crowne Plaza rebranded as a [[Sheraton Hotels and Resorts|Sheraton]] Plaza in 1988. [[Dillard's]] opened two stores in 1991 at the east end filling the two remaining anchor pads. Maison Blanche was rebranded by [[Gayfers]] in early 1992 as a result of Mercantile Stores. In 1996, Belk became [[Saks Fifth Avenue]], while the Sheraton hotel was sold to [[Adam's Mark]]. Then, in 1998, Gayfers transitioned into [[Parisian (department store)|Parisian]], whereas Dillard's added a second floor to their newly consolidated store at the east end, closing the other store on the southeast side that was razed for a new wing featuring [[Burdines]], which opened in 1999. [[Lord & Taylor]] replaced Parisian in 2002, and the east wing was expanded again with Central Florida's first and only [[Nordstrom]].<ref name=sentinel72114/> Burdines merged with [[Macy's]] in 2003, and in 2004, the hotel was purchased by a group headed by the [[Bank of Scotland]] and was renamed The Florida Hotel & Conference Center. Burdines-Macy's simply became Macy's in 2005.

Lord & Taylor closed in 2006.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2006/09/15/lord-taylor-will-close-doors-on-saturday/|last=Chediak|first=Mark|title=Lord & Taylor will close doors on Saturday|work=Orlando Sentinel|date=September 15, 2006|access-date=May 28, 2018|language=en}}</ref> Saks Fifth Avenue closed in 2014. The Saks Fifth Avenue anchor store was reconstructed for a new wing with a new Dining Pavilion. The old food court was reconfigured to include more retail and dining space. [[Champs Sports]] and [[Footaction]] (now closed) were added next to the existing [[Foot Locker]] store.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog/2015/05/27-shops-eateries-coming-to-florida-mall-s-new.html|last=Fluker|first=Anjali|title=27 shops, eateries coming to Florida Mall's new Dining Pavilion|publisher=Orlando Business Journal|date=May 28, 2015|access-date=May 8, 2018}}</ref> In August 2014, it was announced that the Nordstrom anchor store would close.<ref name=sentinel72114>{{Cite news|url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-nordstrom-florida-mall-20140721-story.html|title=Nordstrom fell to upscale and outlet competition, analysts say|first=Susan|last=Jacobson|work=Orlando Sentinel|date=July 21, 2014|access-date=May 8, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog/2014/07/could-nordstrom-do-better-at-another-orlando-site.html|last=Fluker|first=Anjali|title=Could Nordstrom do better at another Orlando site?|publisher=Orlando Business Journal|date=July 17, 2014|access-date=May 8, 2018}}</ref> In June 2015, Nordstrom was redesigned for [[Dick's Sporting Goods]] and the [[Crayola Experience]].

[[File:The Florida Mall looking north from Macy's.jpg|thumb|left|The Florida Mall looking north from Macy's (from 2018)]]
The Lord & Taylor anchor store was demolished in 2007 and redeveloped into a new outdoor plaza with stores [[Forever 21]], [[H&M]] and [[Zara (retailer)|Zara]] in 2009, with [[American Girl]] being added in the Fall of 2014.

In 2017, [[Shake Shack]] opened at the mall.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

In early 2019, the mall hosted the [[Cirque du Soleil]] touring show ''[[Luzia (Cirque du Soleil)|Luzia]]'' under the big top.{{update inline|date=August 2019}} This limited engagement was the first time Cirque's iconic big top has been raised in the Orlando area.

In 2023, Forever 21 relocated its store from across American Girl to a smaller space next to the Dining Pavilion.

On August 29, 2024 Primark opened in the old Forever 21 location.

In March 2025, it was announced that the entire Forever 21 chain was closing. Their new anchor store closed on May 1, 2025.
<ref>{{cite web | title=Primark opens at Florida Mall with entire floor dedicated to Disney merchandise. What to know | url=https://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/2024/08/29/orlando-primark-disney-florida-theme-parks-clothes/74993229007/ }}</ref>

In 2025, a portion of the Sears store was leased to [[Round One Corporation|Round1]]. [[Round One Corporation|Round1]] began construction on one of their arcades in the former Sears space in 2025. The Sears store will continue to operate on a smaller footprint. Round1 is set to open in 2026.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-10-10 |title=Round1 Bowling & Arcade to Open in Orlando |url=https://whatnow.com/orlando/restaurants/round1-bowling-arcade-to-open-in-orlando/ |access-date=2025-11-16 |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Transportation==
Right next to the mall stretches [[Florida State Road 528|SR 528]] (Beachline Expressway) which has an interchange with [[U.S. Route 17 in Florida|US 17]]/[[U.S. Route 92|US 92]]/[[U.S. Route 441 in Florida|US 441]] ([[Orange Blossom Trail]]) at exit 4. The exit is only few exits away from the [[Orlando International Airport]]. The mall is also accessible from exit 254 of [[Florida's Turnpike]], which connects to Orange Blossom Trail.

The mall is serviced by [[Lynx (Orlando)|Lynx]] buses (links) 7, 37, 42, 107, 108, 111, 418, and 441 at the Florida Mall SuperStop. The Florida Mall SuperStop has direct bus service from several points in the Orlando area including [[Lynx Central Station]] in [[Downtown Orlando]], [[Kissimmee, Florida|Kissimmee]], Orlando International Airport, [[SeaWorld Orlando]], and [[Universal Orlando Resort]].<ref name=lynxschedule>{{cite web|title=Lynx Schedule Book|publisher=Lynx|url=https://www.golynx.com/resources/pdf/LYNX-Schedule-Book_July-15.2018_Web3.pdf|access-date=July 25, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Florida Mall SuperStop|publisher=Lynx|url=https://www.golynx.com/core/fileparse.php/97362/urlt/LNX_Lft_FloridaMall_WEB.pdf|access-date=August 5, 2018}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
*[http://www.simon.com/mall/the-florida-mall The Florida Mall Official Website]

{{Greater Orlando Malls}}
{{Simon Property Group}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Florida Mall}}
[[Category:Shopping malls established in 1986]]
[[Category:Simon Property Group]]
[[Category:Shopping malls in Florida]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Orlando, Florida]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Orlando, Florida]]
[[Category:1986 establishments in Florida]]
[[Category:Shopping malls developed by Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation]]