Flagship Neiman Marcus store in Dallas gets one last hurrah after 100+ years as a downtown icon

It's the end of an era for Neiman Marcus, as the Dallas-founded fashion retailer closed the doors to its flagship location in the heart of downtown on Wednesday evening.

The store's closing, however, drew in plenty of shoppers in for one last look around, one final peek at the window displays, and perhaps one more meal inside the store's Zodiac room.

For more than 100 years, the flagship Neiman Marcus store has been Dallas' diamond of glamor, high fashion, and cultural significance. Jay Johsnon grew up visiting it.

"My grandparents started bringing me in the 1970's," he told CBS News Texas. "It's sad for such an iconic store."

For Candace Jenkins, one final visit was a must.

"It's sad. This dynamic and monumental store is closing," she said.

"It is Dallas," Johnson echoed. "When you read the history of the Marcus family, it's been in downtown all these years. It's part of the fabric of Dallas."

Woven into Dallas history

Neiman Marcus is not leaving Dallas; it's just closing down the Main Street location, where it's been since 1914.

Michael Hazel, a Dallas historian, has chronicled much of the city's history for decades. He said that, for much of the 20th century, the city embraced the work of the fashion staple's leader, Stanley Marcus, credited for stitching and weaving in civic pride with high-fashion grace and style at the flagship store.

"It was always iconic in Dallas," Hazel said. "Neiman was the last to stay, who stuck it out, who stayed downtown."

"It was the reputation of Neiman Marcus," Hazel added, "and at that time, the focus was on the downtown store, because it was the only one it was."

For years, the downtown Dallas flagship has struggled. But beyond that, it was the image of Dallas taste and flair, a destination site for world visitors.

And on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, customers and admirers gave the downtown icon one final farewell.

The changing fabric of downtown

The closing of the flagship Neiman Marcus store is just one example of the season of change underway in downtown Dallas, something observed by visitor Charlotte Jenkins.

"Sometimes, it's just time to move," she said. "Downtown has to move faster, be more competitive, so we can attract the next wave of growth."

Downtown Dallas Inc. shared a status report on Wednesday morning, focusing on how the city's center is being re-imagined. The organization promotes and pushes development downtown. Its vision for the urban core involves reinvesting in the soon-to-be-vacated AT&T headquarters as the telecom giant moves to a new campus in Plano.

The organization also says a mix of new life can be expected for buildings like the city's highest skyscraper: the Bank of America building. Additionally, Downtown Dallas Inc. said there will be additions to the residential part of downtown, which should lead to more people living there. Chris Beynon, an urban planner, says these plans are about "ultimately doubling the downtown population".

"Reimagining our downtown economy has to be in these spaces," he said, "where we are thinking about the future, all of these things."

Richard Marvin is one of the more than 100,000 or so people who work or live in the downtown area. He believes downtown is still a core asset for Dallas.

"I think as it becomes more of a residential area, with businesses moving in like Y'all Street, this is key infrastructure that will be used in ways," he said.