American Girl Inks Deal on 40,000 SF

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LOS ANGELES–Sometimes, patience and persistence are good things. Caruso Affiliated, owner and developer of the Grove, has been courting American Girl Place since before the retail and entertainment center opened its doors in 2002. The wait is over as the company, which is run under a division of Mattel Inc and caters to girls 7-11, has agreed on 40,000 sf. Terms were not disclosed on the amount or length of the lease, but the Grove location will be American Girl’s third location. It joins high-end spaces in Chicago and New York, where more than 10 million girls have visited and shopped, according to a Caruso company report.The American Girl space will feature the company’s full line of products, which include books, historical dolls – which begin at $84 – a clothing line, and even, gulp, an opportunity for girls to get their doll a makeover at the store’s Doll Hair Salon. Another feature of the stores are the tea parties at a café and live performances of The American Girls Revue, an original musical, which has sold more than 300,000 tickets at the Chicago and New York locations.A representative with Caruso tells Globest.com that American Girl is ideal for the 575,000-sf Grove, which is located adjacent to the Farmers Market. “It’s a perfect fit,” says Jennifer Gordon, vice president of marketing, with Caruso. Gordon also handles marketing at the Grove and says that the Grove already has a park area, which frequently brings in between “100-400 kids for live performances.”The deal brings the Grove to 100% leased as American Girl will fill space vacated by FAO Schwartz, after the company filed bankruptcy. The center is anchored by fashion staples Banana Republic, Nordstrom, Gap, J. Crew and Pacific Sunwear and specialty outlets Barnes & Noble, Crate & Barrel, Apple Computers and Nike Women.