Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina, August 8, 2002

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Fairview Road exterior entrance at night, circa 2003 (courtesy Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Mall entrance, circa 1995. (SouthPark mall)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. A t-shirt given to Belk employees to celebrate the completion of the 2002 expansion and remodel. The shirt was courtesy of the general contractor. (Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Artist's rendering of proposed Sharon Road facade, 1969. (courtesy of Pat Richardson)

Belk (at right), SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. View of mall under construction from Fairview Road side, 1969. (courtesy of Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. View of escalator well, 1989. (courtesy Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Exterior sign facing Sharon Road. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Fairview Road façade. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Sharon Road façade. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Mall entrance. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Rear façade. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Processional to Fairview Road entrance. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Fairview Road entrance. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Storefront detail at Fairview Road entrance. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Chandelier at Fairview Road entrance. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Chandelier and interior of portico at Fairview Road entrance. Photgraphed 4/16/01.

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Store employees on Level 2 trying to get the new addition of the store ready for business (note the areas in the back of the photo with the construction plastic--only about one-fourth of the new section was complete at the time). This is from Sept 2001. Frequent LiveMalls contributor Patrick Richardson is on the right. (Photo courtesy of Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Christmas decorations in Cosmetics department, 11/11/06. (Photo by Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Print advertisement for Design Studio in Furniture department, 1986. (courtesy Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Employee charge receipt for cookware purchased in 1993. (Pat Richardson)

Belk, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. Charge receipt for cookware purchased in 1988. (Pat Richardson)

Receipts pictured are used by permission of the purchaser and have been reduced in size and altered to mask personal information.

Hecht's, Friendly Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (orignial 1967 building) 1/12/04

Hecht's, Friendly Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (orignial 1967 building). Photographed with camera phone 10/04/05.

Hecht's, Friendly Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (1997 expansion) 1/12/10/04

The Hecht's store at Friendly Center was orginally opened as Thalhimers in 1967 and was the largest anchor in the open-air mall at 50,000 square feet on one level, with a second level reserved for storage and future expansion. It replaced a smaller Ellis-Stone store located elsewhere in the shopping center.

Thalhimers operated its Greensboro stores as Ellis-Stone from their purchase of the downtown Greensboro store of that name in 1950, through the opening of the Friendly Center store in 1957, until the erection of this building.

The dramatic concrete-panel arches with brick fills were considered elegant and modern at the time of the store's design and provided a distinctive exterior face to the store when compared to the spartan original design of Friendly Center, which mostly featured brick buildings with aluminum canopies. Thalhimers also featured a collonade around three sides of the building and four front showcases resembling bay windows on the otherwise blank exterior walls.

Expansion of Thahinmers occoured after the closing of the downtown store, three miles east, in 1975 and the additon of a smaller store at Four Seasons Mall, three miles southwest, that same year. The mall store soon totalled 97,000 square feet on two levels.

In 1990, Thalhimers was purchsed by the May Department Stores Company which operated the chain as a seperate division until 1992, when it was folded into May's Hecht's division. The Friendly Center store was retained, even as May closed several of its sister stores in the area, including the Four Seasons location.

After years of decline, Friendly Center began to attract upscale merchants in the mid '90s. The mall was revitalized and portions of it were rebuilt. As the anchor with a central location in the center, Hecht's became a major part of the new upswing and sales grew enough to justify a major expansion of the Friendly Center store, especially after the deal for a larger replacement store at Four Seasons fell through.

Opened in 1997, the new expansion added nearly 50,000 square feet on two levels to the old store and was augmented by a major interior renovation, the first in over a decade. The old exterior design was continued in the additon, with a second major entrance added, facing a new retail building and a rebuilt Belk store.

The original collonade was added to the interior space of the store on the sides of the building and was not continued to the expansion. The showcases were also removed at that time.

This store is still an integral part of Hecht's future, with sales that are well above company averege. It was joined by an additonal free-standing location four miles southwest along Interstate 40 at Wendover Avenue in 2002.

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina (webshots.com)

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Lower level entrance. (ctcharlotte.com)

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Escalator well. (ctcharlotte.com)

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Lower level mall entrance. Photographed by camera phone 12/9/06

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Upper level mall entrance. Photographed by camera phone 12/9/06

Hudson Belk, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Mall entrance. Photographed by camera phone 12/9/06

The new millennium, stagnant sales, and a revamped corporate structure were Charlotte, North Carolina-based Belk, Inc.’s incentives to evolve its store prototypes. From 2001 on, Belk stores tended to get smaller than before, and were located in more strip malls and lifestyle centers than regional malls, reversing a three decade trend of large stores in regional malls.

The company did not completely abandon malls, especially in its core markets in the Carolinas, as is seen in this Hudson Belk store in The Streets at Southpoint mall in Durham, North Carolina. Opened in 2002, it presents a contemporary face on Belk’s mall offering. The 180,000 square foot, two-level store reflects Belk’s ‘Millennium’ design, with a more open interior, large glass-covered entries, a clerestory skylight topping a oval escalator well, and a Carmen!Carmen! Aveda Prestige day spa; one of only a handful in the Belk chain.

Belk closed three Hudson Belk stores in the Raleigh-Durham area to open the Southpoint store. The former South Square Mall store (opened in 1975), seven miles west, closed in January 2002 and was demolished when the mall was torn down. A Sam’s Club opened on its site in 2004. The former Northgate Mall store (opened in 1995), located across town, closes in February 2004, with plans for it to be replaced with a multi-screen movie theater and several smaller shops. The University Mall store (opened in 1973), located ten miles to the west in Chapel Hill, also closed in January 2002 and was replaced by A Southern Season gourmet grocery store.

JCPenney, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina (webshots.com)

JCPenney, The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Mall entrance. Photographed by camera phone 12/9/06.

Nordstrom; The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina

Nordstrom; The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina (webshots.com)

Nordstrom; The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina. Photgraphed September 15, 2008

No doubt about it, The Streets at Southpoint mall in Durham, North Carolina, would have never been built without an anchor store commitment from Nordstrom.

The signing of Nordstrom to the mall located near the Research Triangle Park encouraged JCPenney and Hudson Belk to move from their longtime homes at South Square Mall, seven miles way in west Durham, to the new center, joining committed anchors Hecht's and Sears and adding leverage to the center's tenant mix. South Square closed after losing Penney and Belk, leaving the Durham market ripe and ready for new retail space.

A host of upscale boutiques that define Southpoint followed in Nordstrom's wake, and Southpoint is considered the second-most upscale mall in the Raleigh-Durham area, behind longtime regional powerhouse Crabtree Valley Mall in sales and prestige, but not by much.

The 144,000 square foot, two-level Nordstom is one of the chain's smaller stores, but is also one of its latest store prototypes, utilizing neo-traditional exterior design, more open space and a more efficient department layout. It also features a full-service restaurant on the second floor.

Southpoint was also the first Nordstrom store in North Carolina, opened on March 11, 2002, two years before the Charlotte store at SouthPark, though the Charlotte store was committed to first by the company. Legal troubles delayed a major expansion project there, and Nordstrom was a key component of the new construction.

Nordstrom, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina (photo by outisthorough)


Interior entrance of Nordstrom, SouthPark mall, Charlotte, North Carolina (photo by outisthorough)

Nordstrom made huge headlines in Charlotte, North Carolina in March 2004 for opening this 144,000 square foot, two-level store at SouthPark mall. It anchors a major expansion of SouthPark that included a wing of upscale stores like Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Lacoste, St. John, and Tiffany & Co. that connects Norstrom to the existing mall.

It's the company's second location in North Carolina; the other is located in The Streets at Southpoint in Durham. The Charlotte store boasts its own restaurant, coffee bar and a personal shopping service, among other amenities

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. The original three-story portico with two multi-tiered chandeliers before it was obstructed by an addition to the mall's parking deck, 2003. (Wake County, North Carolina Real Estate)


Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina 12/30/04


Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina, 12/30/04. The sheer mass of the 251,000 square foot building is evident from this distance, which is adjacent to the mall's Convenience Center.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina 10/20/07


Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina, 5/1/2005. The three-story portico with two multi-tiered chandeliers is original and was partially obstructed by an addition to the mall's parking deck (left) in 2003.


Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. The three story portico without its signature chandeliers, with a skybridge under construction for a new entrance. Photographed with camera phone 6/23/05..

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. Signage on south exterior wall. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05..

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. South entrance on lower level. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. South entrance on upper level, with bridge connecting to parking deck. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. East entrance doors on lower level. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.


Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. Upper and lower level mall entrances. Photographed with camera phone 6/23/05.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. Escalator well, viewed from Level 2. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. Up escalator on Level 1. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.


Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. View of Level Two from down escalator. Photographed with camera phone 6/23/05.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. Former Women's Shoes department, scheduled for renovation in 2005-2006. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Hudson Belk, Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. New Women's Shoes department. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Hudson Belk at Crabtree Valley Mall is 251,000 square feet on three levels and opened in 1972. This is one of Belk's flagship locations and its most productive store, sales-wise. It is also the largest department store in the Raleigh-Durham area.

The chandeliers on the portico are original and will likely be removed when a new upper level entrance is added to the parking deck. The parking deck was erected in 2003 and ruined the previously stately store facade.

This store was home to the much-loved Capital Room cafeteria, which closed this year. The Capital Room was located directly behind the chandeliers.

former Hecht's (now Macy's), Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina 12/30/04

Macy's (former Hecht's), Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina 10/20/07

former Hecht's (now Macy's), Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. (Wake County, North Carolina Real Estate)


former Hecht's (now Macy's), Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina. Upper and lower level mall entrances. Photographed with camera phone 6/23/05.

Hecht's at Crabtree Valley Mall opened this 180,000 square foot, two-level location in 1995. It was previously located in a smaller space in the mall it bought from the parent company of Thalhimers in late 1990. That store carried the Thalhimers name briefly and was rebranded in 1992. After this store opened, the old Thalhimers/Hecht's became Lord & Taylor, closed due to poor sales in 2006.

Poor sales have never been this store's problem, however, as it consistently was one of Hecht's most productive locations. It is also was one of the chain's most striking architecturally.

This location converted to the Macy's nameplate in September 2006 after the merger of Federated Department Stores and The May Department Stores Company, Hecht's parent company.

Hudson Belk, Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 12/30/04

Hudson Belk, Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, North Carolina. Upper level exterior entrance. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Hudson Belk, Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, North Carolina. Mall entrance. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

This Hudson Belk store is the chain's newest under the hyphenated banner. Opened in August 2002 at Triangle Town Center, this 180,000 square foot, two-level store is an anchor of of the first totally new enclosed mall built in Wake County since 1979.

Design-wise, the store is done in Belk's 'millenium' style; substantially more contemporary than most of the chain's locations. A very similar design is used at stores in Durham (Southpoint) and Charleston (Citadel), South Carolina. A version of the design was also planned for the renovated SouthPark store in Charlotte, but was rejected as too contemporary, though many of the details of this store live on in the Neoclassical-themed Charlotte location.

Belk reorganized its corporate structure in 1998, replacing 112 seperate store corporations (!) with a single corporate entity headquartered in Charlotte. The Husdon family, half-owners of the former Belk Hudson Leggett corporation which controlled the Raleigh stores, became the largest non-Belk family stockholders in the new Belk corporation, which meant that while many of the other hyphenated names that typified Belk stores were retired, Hudson Belk remained.

There is a subtle nod to the new corporate structure, however. Contrast the sign on this store with the sign on the Crabtree store and you may notice the 'Hudson' portion of the newer sign is noticably smaller than it was on the older store. I think that Belk will probably remove the Hudson portion in the near future, as it is the last surviving hyphenated logo in an increasingly standardized company.

Saks Fifth Avenue, Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, North Carolina (photo by outisthorough)

Saks Fifth Avenue, Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, North Carolina. Exterior entrance near Food Court. Photographed with camera phone 3/24/07.

Saks Fifth Avenue, Triangle Town Center, Raleigh, North Carolina. Mall entrance. Photographed with camera phone 7/15/05.

Triangle Town Center in Raleigh scored a major coup when Saks Fifth Avenue opened its first North Carolina store at the mall in September 2004, beating out Charlotte, where the chain continues to search for a suitable location.

The two-level, 80,000 square foot store is the smallest anchor in the mall, but is also the most upscale. It is designed in Saks latest prototype, which is simultaneously more contemporary in department layout and more traditional in exterior appearance. A very similar store to this design opened in Richmond, Virginia a year before the Raleigh location.