The Dulles Town Center shopping mall in Sterling has seen three new shops open in the past month. It’s all part of new owner Centennial trying to breathe life back into the center.
According to an announcement from the mall, the new stores include Pressy, “a one-stop-shop for custom embroidery designs, t-shirt and team uniform printing, monogramming and heat transfer,” Socks to Be You, “a unique purveyor of all-things-socks,” and Handmade by LMAC, “a collaborative retail store featuring local Loudoun County makers, artists and crafters.”
Earlier this year, a massage studio — Relaxing Studio — opened in a storefront at the mall, as did a new optometry office called EyeDocDulles. Some businesses that were in kiosks at the mall have upgraded to larger store spaces as well.
As regular readers know, there has been a steady drumbeat of closures at not just the Dulles Town Center, but at malls nationwide. Locally, multiple national brands, including several anchor stores such as Sears, have closed their doors. Between online ordering, a trend away from indoor malls, and the pandemic, it’s been a triple whammy. When Centennial took over operations at the mall in 2020, there was talk that they might one day completely reimagine and renovate the mall as they are doing with some of their other properties. You can see our report here.
The Dulles Town Center has added a new general manager, but at this time, Centennial says they are not ready to make any announcements about future redevelopment plans. Right now, they are focused on bringing in new retailers and improving the overall shopping experience.