The original north anchor of PHIPPS PLAZA was Lord & Taylor. The store opened in October 1969 and included a beauty salon and restaurant. It was the largest of fourteen branches. A Saks Fifth Avenue, on the south end of the complex, made its debut in August 1968. It was the twenty-eighth store in that chain.
Once a country estate, the site at the intersection of Lenox and Peachtree Roads hosted the region's first multilevel, fully-enclosed mall. When fully-realized in 1972, PHIPPS PLAZA encompassed approximately 518,000 leasable square feet and housed forty stores and services. Free parking was provided for 2,600 autos.
PHIPPS PLAZA TENANTS 1972:
SAKS FIFTH AVENUE (with Beauty Salon) / LORD & TAYLOR (with Beauty Salon and Restaurant) / Albert's Hosiery / August Max ladies' wear / Barclay Gallery, Limited / Baron's men's wear / Cafe On The Mall / Courts & Company stock brokers / Dempsey & Carrol Stationers & Engravers / Gingiss Formal Wear / Happy House / Harry Baron's Delicatessen-Restaurant / I. Miller Shoes / Issacson's ladies' wear / Joseph Brennan ladies' wear / Judi Lesli ladies' wear / Lassiter's Bath 'n Boudoir / Lillie Rubin ladies' wear / Lugene Optical Boutique / Mark Cross, Limited / Memory Lane / Motherhood Maternity / Musicland / Paraphernalia ladies' wear / Peachtree Bottle Shop / Phipps Plaza Theatre (single screen) / Reynolds & Company stock brokers / Russell Stover Candies / Slightly Ahead Electronics / Susan Ives ladies' wear / Snooty Hooty / The Orchard At Schrafft's restaurant / The Shop of John Simmons / The Stereo Place / The Wine Shop / Tiffany & Company / W. & J. Sloane home furnishings / Waldenbooks / Wexner's ladies' wear / Wicks 'N Sticks
The mall's first movie house, the single-screen Phipps Plaza Theatre, opened in December 1969. It was divided and re-opened, as the twin venue seen here, in March 1975.
Photo from the Stan Malone Collection
Meanwhile, in December 1973, an additional single-screen cinema had been completed. Known as the Phipps Penthouse, it was built on the roof of the existing mall.
Photo from the Stan Malone Collection
