Chicago’s top shopping destination is experiencing a long-promised renaissance, following a tumultuous decade of store closures, empty storefronts and little foot traffic.
The mile-long stretch of North Michigan Avenue known as the Magnificent Mile is seeing a flurry of new store openings such as Uniqlo and the Hello Kitty Cafe, while at least five retailers have announced plans to open locations in the coming months.
“I think we are getting ready to go to our prom,” Magnificent Mile Association President Kimberly Bares said. “We're on the cusp of some of the best years that Michigan Avenue has seen."
A number of leasing deals coupled with more than $250 million in capital investments by landlords and retailer confidence pushed North Michigan Avenue’s retail vacancy down to 25.8% from 33.8% in 2025, according to October data from Chicago-based brokerage firm Kirsch Agency.
This year, American Eagle Outfitters said its returning to the Mag Mile next summer with a 14,182-square-foot flagship at 600 N. Michigan Ave. Last month, activewear brand Lululemon signed a deal to add another store at the base of the Tribune Tower, 435 N. Michigan, where they'll join incoming tenants Big City Optical and Intuit TurboTax. And the 60,000-square-foot Candy Hall of Fame Experience will also open summer 2027 at 830 N. Michigan, spotlighting candy brands, innovators and confectionery history, as well as a store.
Garage, a trendy Canadian fast fashion brand, plans to open this fall at 625 N. Michigan, according to the Magnificent Mile Association. Fellow Gen Z brand Edikted is also close to finalizing a deal on the Mag Mile, according to brokers with knowledge of the deal.
Meanwhile, some of the street's existing retailers have been rethinking their spaces, angling for new positions. Levi Strauss signed a lease this year to relocate into a 9,000-square-foot store, 663 N. Michigan, larger than its nearby 5,555-square-foot space at 600 N. Michigan. Nike will downsize from its 57,000-square-foot flagship into a two-level 43,000-square-foot space at the Shops at North Bridge.
The Shops at North Bridge announced in August a $40 million renovation for the mall's interior and exterior to be completed by next year, with hopes to entice experiential retailers. It follows the $170 million redevelopment plan at Water Tower Place, announced in April, that would transform the struggling mall's lower floors and bring in women’s specialty stores, apparel and beauty brands and experiential concepts.
“We're watching a very, very fast recovery,” Greg Kirsch, managing broker of Kirsch Agency, said. “It's not that the rents are low. It's that the sales performance is high because when they were really at their lowest, there was still no deal activity.”
Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel's record $500 million property tax increase in 2015 impacted retailers' desire to move into prime real estate in the city because the hikes would be passed on to tenants, Kirsch said.
The Mag Mile's retail vacancy rate was a low 3.6% in 2016, but by 2018, it jumped to 12%, according to Kirsch Agency data.
“I think people forget that even before the pandemic, Michigan Avenue — because of its reliance on in-person shopping — was experiencing competition from online retailers,” Bares said.
By 2019, major retailers like Forever 21, Crate & Barrel, Best Buy, Apple and Topshop shuttered their expansive Mag Mile stores. And the following year, the pandemic brought looting and an increase in violent crime that lingered for years.
“One of the things that's very important in retail is that the customers feel comfortable in the environment, and when people don't feel comfortable shopping, they feel nervous or threatened or unsafe,” Kirsch said.
He said the "biggest blow" was when Macy’s closed its Water Tower Place store in 2021. The department store had been there for 45 years and accounted for 20% of the mall’s 818,000 square feet.
Other retailers followed. In 2021, Gap closed its three-level flagship, along with Express and Uniqlo, and in 2023, a gaggle of wireless carriers, like Verizon and T-Mobile, closed their flagship locations.
But signs of a recovery kicked off in 2024 when women's retailer Aritzia opened its store at 555 N. Michigan, taking over Gap's old space. When the Canadian company had announced in 2022 its plan for a 46,000-square-foot store, it was the largest lease on the Mag Mile in a decade and a turning point for the corridor, Bares said.
And with yoga brand Alo’s first Chicago store, 717 N. Michigan, already open by 2023, it seemingly re-energized interest among other retailers.
“Word got out that [Aritzia and Alo] were performing above expectation,” Kirsch said. “More retailers paid attention to the avenue. The more that they learned, the more they wanted to be a part of it.”
Retailers that left the Mag Mile, like Uniqlo, returned. Others, such as The North Face, relocated and often downsized, looking for a more desirable place on the street. And international brands, including Intimissimi, Mango, Falconeri and Charles Tyrwhitt, soon joined the bunch.
Italian cashmere label Falconeri said the Mag Mile was an ideal choice because it’s “one of the premier luxury shopping destinations” in the country, said Gianni Forlini, chief business officer of Oniverse U.S., which owns Falconeri and Intimissimi.
“Michigan Avenue provides the visibility, prestige and customer base needed to introduce our timeless Italian cashmere and natural fiber collections to a broader audience,” he said in an email.
The store, which opened this summer, has been meeting the brand’s expectations, reinforcing its confidence in the city, Forlini said.
The corridor that was once full of legacy brands, like Banana Republic, Columbia Sportswear and Express, is now occupied by retailers popular with younger generations.
And it's also home to experiences like the Harry Potter Shop at 676 N. Michigan and the interactive gaming experience The Cube, 600 N. Michigan, as well as other concepts nearby such as The Hand & the Eye magic theater, 100 E. Ontario St. — giving consumers an experience similar to malls.
“I want to say there's been six or seven really sizable deals, like massive deals,” Kirsch said. “Lululemon and Nike and the Candy Hall of Fame. Normally, a market like Michigan Avenue would get one of those per year, and we got three of them in 2026.”
The influx of new retailers has been satisfying for the real estate industry and the Magnificent Mile Associaton, after years of headlines about a downtrodden Michigan Avenue.
“People are waking up to great retail and leasing news,” Bares said. “But these deals have been years in the making, and that's part of the story that Michigan Avenue has been rebounding for the last, at least, two years.”
