Opened in 1975, it was the first multipurpose skyscraper mall.

It’s a gateway to the city’s most impressive Nordstrom.

Former anchor Carson Pirie Scott’s Santa Claus would draw lines out the door.

It’s the “fancy mall.” Pristine walkways and lush green turf give a welcome-to-Miami feel.

Lord & Taylor! Marshall Field’s! Oprah Winfrey’s condo!

Armani Exchange and Louis Vuitton held sway.

It was a classic Stranger Things–style teen hangout that answered every Cinnabon dream.

When it opened in 1962, Jewel-Osco was a main tenant.

It’s a kids’ world, and frenzied parents are just shopping in it. Joining mainstays like American Girl Place and the Lego Store are Unicorn World, JoJo’s Shake Bar, Selfie Haus of Chicago (photo backdrops to feed every tween’s TikTok aspirations), and, most recently, Harry Potter: Magic at Play, an immersive experience.

E-commerce brands are moving in. Leap, a Chicago startup that provides brick-and-mortar space to such businesses, helped fill vacancies left by Sephora, Lucky Brand, and Alex and Ani. Also, the mall has become interactive exhibition central, having been the site for both The Friends Experience and Prince: The Immersive Experience.

It’s doubled down on residences, not retail, erecting the 304-unit Lumen apartments where Sears used to be. Next up: an attached 319-unit luxury apartment complex and senior living center.

Luxury is the name of the game, with Gucci having arrived in October 2021 and C.D. Peacock on the docket for this June. Even the experiential tenants are bougie: Louvre Fantastique, featuring 3D re-creations of masterpieces, recently took over the Sears space.

Hubbard Street Dance moved its performance and practice space into the former Adidas store.

The mall hosted A&E’s Court Night Live, with Judge Greg Mathis litigating cases in a pop-up courtroom.

Action Time Bungee. Think trampoline and bungee jumping. Now combine them. What could go wrong?

Escape the Room was a huge investment, at $100,000 to build (the biggest budget of any escape room in the Chicago area). Two words: animatronic dinosaurs.