1997–2001: Planning and construction Swerdlow Real Estate of
Hollywood, Florida, first announced plans to develop Dolphin Mall in March 1997 when the company acquired near the intersection of
Florida's Turnpike (SR 821) and
Dolphin East–West Expressway (SR 836) in what was then unincorporated
Dade County, Florida. Their plans called for a retail shopping mall with
outlet stores. The mall was considered by developers and retail analysts to be a competitor of
Sawgrass Mills, another large outlet mall in
Sunrise, Florida, which opened in October 1990. Construction began in June 1998, by which point Swerdlow had confirmed a number of tenants. Among these were a movie theater and
Dave & Buster's, along with
Burlington Coat Factory,
Saks Off 5th,
Marshalls, and
Oshman's Sporting Goods. By May 1999, Swerdlow announced plans to form a
joint venture with
Taubman Centers, Inc. of
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, to assist in development of the mall. The mall was to feature over 150 inline stores. Overall, the mall occupied of space and had 7,800 parking spaces. Beame Architectural Partnership was the architect. Building costs were estimated at $290,000,000. Because of its proximity to
Miami International Airport and Miami's
Latin American population, developers sought to include amenities suitable for Latin Americans and travelers. These included hiring staffers who speak Spanish, Latin American-themed decor within the mall, unisex bathrooms, and storage lockers big enough to hold luggage. Additionally, the mall featured different decor in each wing, each referred to by a different Spanish name:
ramblas ("the walk"),
playa ("beach"), and
moda ("fashion"). The mall consisted mostly of one story except for the
ramblas area, which featured the movie theater and Dave & Buster's on a second level overlooking the rest of the mall. Among the stores open for business on opening day were
FYE (For Your Entertainment),
Linens 'n Things,
Old Navy, Marshalls, and Burlington Coat Factory. Taubman assumed Swerdlow's 50% share of the mall in October 2002, thus taking over complete ownership.
After opening Expansion plans announced in 2005 and completed in 2007 added
Bass Pro Shops to the mall, as well as a
Courtyard by Marriott hotel on the periphery. Additionally, a number of condominiums were developed around the mall at this point. In January 2010,
Bloomingdale's - The Outlet Store announced that it would open its first location in
Florida at the mall. At the time of the mall's 10th
anniversary in March 2011, research by Taubman Centers reported it to be one of the top 20 performing malls in the United States, which the company attributed to strong tourism and a different tenant mix than Sawgrass Mills. Additionally, while Sawgrass Mills tended to have more upscale stores such as
Donna Karan, Taubman sought more lower-cost tenants at Dolphin Mall as a means of attracting tourists and families.
IKEA announced plans in 2013 to build its second South Florida store adjacent to the mall. An expansion began in November 2014 added a
parking garage and five restaurants to the front of the mall. According to a 2014 study, the most popular non-American demographics of Dolphin Mall were Colombians and Brazilians. This book noted that it was common for Colombians to shop at malls in the United States because they often had drastically lower prices than found at malls in Colombia. Dolphin Mall developed its own smartphone app in 2016, which helps assist shoppers in navigating malls and finding deals at individual stores. Also, in July 2016,
Sports Authority (which acquired Oshman's) closed its location at the mall, as the company went out of business after filing for
Chapter 7 bankruptcy in May of that year (previously
Chapter 11 in March) and sold the location back to Taubman Centers. In February 2020,
Simon Property Group, which also owns Sawgrass Mills, acquired an 80% stake in Taubman for $3.6 billion, placing their entire mall portfolio, including Dolphin Mall, under their ownership and management. The mall was placed under Simon's The Mills subsidiary. ==Impact==