Originally and formerly called North DeKalb Center, the mall first opened July 29, 1965, with fifty-four stores; original anchor stores included Atlanta-based department storeRich's, and a Woolworthdime store. In 1986, North DeKalb Mall was expanded and renovated with two new anchor stores: department store chains Mervyn's and discount chainLechmere. The mall was renamed Market Square at North DeKalb at this time. Lechmere closed in 1989 and was replaced with the discount pharmacy chain Phar-Mor, which closed in 1992 and was eventually replaced with a movie theater and Rhodes Furniture. Mervyns shuttered all of its Georgia locations in 1997; the store at North DeKalb was replaced by an Uptons, which closed in 1999, then it became the current Burlington Coat Factory. Stein Mart was added in the early 1990s, replacing a portion of a mall wing which once housed a Spinnaker's restaurant, a Bonanza Steakhouse and smaller mall stores. Old Navy was also added but later closed, becoming Ross Dress for Less. Rhodes Furniture was later Shoder Furniture for a short time before becoming Marshalls in 2010. A furniture store also replaced the old Stein Mart. Hendon Properties, which bought the mall for $25 million in 2003, planned on bringing a Costco to the mall. On May 15, 2014, it was announced that Lennar Commercial Investors LLC, together with Sterling Organization, purchased the mall for an undisclosed amount, with plans to convert the enclosed portion to an open-air concept. In the spring of early 2016, the Macy's anchor closed. North Dekalb Mall has since become the 'almost' mall of Dekalb County with Costco 'almost' becoming a store anchor for nearly a decade. The mall's primary traffic stems from Emory University employees who use North Dekalb Mall's vast parking lots as a temporary location for ride sharing into the University. This along with limited traffic from the AMC movie theater has helped keep the mall from going completely under. As of 2019, multiple vacant storefronts in the North DeKalb Mall in Georgia were now renovated so that they could be used for filming. Casual Corner, Software Etc., B. Dalton Bookseller, Musicland and Gadzooks were placed.
