The Village of Merrick Park isn't so much an actual village but rather a fancy open-air mall. Of course, it's far too cushy to use the term "mall," but fearing that the name caused some confusion, it's officially renaming itself the Merrick Shops.
The name change coincides with both the mall's 10-year anniversary, and the change of the Design District into a major luxury-shopping competitor.
"The Village of Merrick Park name really didn't resonate with shoppers," Kerem Kayser, senior general manager told the Miami Herald. "We believe it caused a lot of confusion in the marketplace. We wanted our name to distinctly represent that we are an exclusive shopping destination."
Giving that the enclosed complex's exterior doesn't exactly scream "mall" from the outside to passing traffic, it's probably a good idea.
However, the stores inside are doing just fined. Sales per square foot are at the highest level in the mall's history, even beating the record set in that pre-recession year of 2007. The mall is anchored by Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom, and includes designer boutiques like Gucci, Diane von Furstenberg and Jimmy Choo. With the Design District emerging as a luxury shopping destination, management decided it was time to ramp up marketing and clarify exactly what goes on there: shopping, not parking or villaging.
Though, according to the Herald they also tested out including words like "shoppes" and "mall" before deciding on the traditional "shops." Switching out "Merrick" for "Coral Gables" was also discussed but dropped.
The name change was approved by the Coral Gables commission and will go into effect either later this year or early next year.
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