Dillard’s, a department store chain with deep roots in the Lone Star State, will shutter its location at The Shops at Willow Bend in Plano after the first of the year—marking the end of an era for a shopping destination once considered one of North Texas’ premier malls. The store will shut down between Jan. 12 and Jan. 25, resulting in 93 layoffs, according to a state WARN notice.
The closure follows Neiman Marcus’ recent announcement that it will also exit the property in January 2027, clearing the way for a sweeping redevelopment of the aging mall.
Property owner Centennial is preparing to demolish more than a third of the mall to make room for a mixed-use project dubbed The Bend, which will replace traditional retail with a new urban-style community. Plans call for 800,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment space, along with nearly 1,000 residential units, a hotel and a seven-story office tower. Construction is expected to take about three years, wrapping up around 2028.
But The Bend’s next act could include an even bigger attraction. The Shops at Willow Bend site has emerged as a favorite contender to host a new arena for the NHL’s Dallas Stars, should the team depart Downtown Dallas’ American Airlines Center when its lease expires in 2031.
The Dillard’s closre adds to a growing list of once-dominant department stores disappearing from Texas’ retail landscape as consumers continue to favor online shopping and open-air lifestyle centers over traditional, enclosed malls.
Founded in 1938 and headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Dillard’s has long been a fixture in Texas shopping centers—especially in suburban markets like Plano. For many North Texans, the Willow Bend store was a holiday shopping mainstay and a symbol of the area’s retail boom in the late 1990s and early 2000s.