Now considered the largest concentration of retail in New England, the Golden Triangle of Framingham-Natick ["Nay-tick"] is bounded by Worcester Road, Cochituate ["Kuh-chich-oo-it"] Road, Speen Street and Concord Street. The area is bisected by the corporation line of the cities of Framingham and Natick and lies 19 miles southwest of central Boston.

Originally, the grouping of merchandisers were situated along a stretch of Worcester Turnpike / Worcester Road, referred to as the Golden Mile. The first large retail entity, the SHOPPERS' WORLD open-air mall, was dedicated in late 1951. Soon, all of the major New England discount chains had built stores in that center's periphery.

Zayre, in the new SHERWOOD PLAZA, was completed in May 1960. A freestanding Bradlees came along in 1962. Caldor made its debut in 1966. By this time, the shopping district had expanded from the Golden Mile nucleus and was known collectively as the Golden Triangle.

A second regional shopping center, NATICK MALL, held its grand opening in April 1966. This was followed by the smaller ROUTE 30 MALL in 1970, NATICK TOWNE MALL in 1978 and FRAMINGHAM MALL in 1979. An even smaller, enclosed center, known as MARSHALLS MALL, also opened in 1979.