Biltmore Fashion Park

Biltmore Fashion Park opened on 31 acres (130,000 m²) of land in what was once considered "the outskirts" of Phoenix in 1963. Anchored at that time by San Francisco's upscale I. Magnin, Saks Fifth Avenue and The Broadway (which opened in 1968) it was the city's original luxury shopping and dining destination. The mall was designed by Welton Becket and Associates and built by the Chanen Construction Company. The original Saks Fifth Avenue featured stone walls native to the region and concrete Native American hieroglyphics.[2] The Broadway Building which was the first expansion of the mall was designed by Charles Luckman and built by the Del E. Webb Corporation in 1968.[3]

During the 1960s and 1970s, The Gittings Portrait Studio at the Biltmore photographed the likes of John Wayne, Bob Hope, Princess Grace of Monaco, Barry Goldwater, Red Skelton, Sophia Loren, and many other celebrities and well-known figures who frequented the Biltmore.

In the mid-1990s, the center was purchased by Taubman Centers for $115 million. During this period, the Biltmore underwent a transformation. Both original anchors were replaced, with Saks Fifth Avenue taking over I. Magnin's former location and Macy's taking The Broadway's former location. The center also introduced a number of new luxury retailers. The Biltmore was also chosen as one of three sites nationwide for The Galleries of Neiman Marcus; however, Neiman Marcus folded the concept two years later.

By the early 2000s, Biltmore Fashion Park was purchased by Westcor, which initiated a relocation project of the more global brand names to the Fashion Square to allow more room for "home-grown" and "fashion-forward" stores.[4]