Foreword: I made this post originally in July 2020, but three more stores have been closed since. I have added all three.
American Girl doubled their permanent store closures yesterday with the closure of three stores. But did you know that there are dozens of stores that are no longer with us today? Whether permanent, foreign, temporary or outlet, there's a bunch of them. This post is dedicated to the American Girl stores that no longer exist.
From 2014 to 2017, American Girl had temporary stores every holiday season. The first of these was in Honolulu, Hawaii at the Ala Moana Shopping Center. It opened on October 4, 2014 and closed in April 2015.
In 2015, more temporary stores opened and closed quickly. A few stores only existed for one season, others were recurring stores.
The Pioneer Place mall in Portland, Oregon had an American Girl temporary store from October 17, 2015 to March 2016.
The Fashion Place mall in Murray, Utah had an American Girl temporary store from October 2015 to January 2016.
The Americana in Glendale, California had an American Girl temporary store from October 2015 to February 2016.
The Fashion Show Mall in Las Vegas, Nevada had an American Girl temporary store from October 2015 to February 2016. (I went to Las Vegas a month before the store opened... oops!)
The Shops at Mission Viejo in California had an American Girl temporary store from October 2015 to January 2016.
The Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego, California had an American Girl temporary store from October 2015 to January 2016.
The next store that closed was the first permanent store to close. The American Girl outlet in Oshkosh, Wisconsin was the first AG outlet (and the only one until Hershey's outlet opened in August 2018). It opened at the Outlet Shoppes at Oshkosh in 2002 and closed on July 27, 2016.
More temporary stores were opened and closed during the 2016-17 holiday season.
The Castleton Square Mall in Indianapolis, Indiana had an American Girl temporary store from October 2015 to March 2016. It opened again from July 2016 to January 2017.
The King of Prussia Mall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania had an American Girl temporary store from July 2016 to January 2017.
The Shops at La Cantera in San Antonio, Texas had an American Girl temporary store from July 2016 to January 2017.
The 2017-18 holiday season was the last one with temporary stores.
The Fashion Mall at Keystone in Indianapolis, Indiana had an American Girl temporary store from August 2017 to January 2018.
The Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi, Michigan had an American Girl temporary store from August 2016 to January 2017. It opened again from July 2017 to January 2018.
The City Creek Center in Salt Lake City, Utah had an American Girl temporary store from August 2017 to January 2018.
The Domain in Austin, Texas had an American Girl temporary store from August 2017 to January 2018.
The Washington Square Mall in Portland, Oregon had an American Girl temporary store from August 2016 to January 2017. It opened again from September 2017 to January 2018.
The Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania had an American Girl temporary store from September 2016 to January 2017. It opened again from October 2017 to January 2018.
The Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, North Carolina had an American Girl temporary store from October 2016 to January 2017. It opened again from July 2017 to January 2018. (I remember going to this mall to eat after an anime convention last summer. I couldn't stop thinking about the closed temporary store!)
In February 2018, the first full American Girl store to close did so. The St. Louis store at the Chesterfield Mall opened in 2012. Due to mall property issues, it closed in February 2018.
In 2015, American Girl opened up three stores in Mexico in partnership with El Palacio de Hierro department stores. By 2018, all three of these stores were closed.
The first store was at Centro Comercial Perisur in southern Mexico City.
The second store was at Paseo Interlomas in Interlomas, Mexico.
The third store was in Polanco, Mexico City.
In 2019, two more permanent American Girl stores closed due to American Girl's financial situation, which caused them not to renew their lease.
One of these stores was in the Natick Collection mall near Boston, Massachusetts. It opened in 2008 and closed in March 2019.
The other store was at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. It opened in 2008 and closed in March 2019.
Also in August 2019, an American Girl shop-in-shop at the Indigo location at CF Sherway Gardens in Toronto was closed. It opened in 2016 before meeting its demise.
In 2017, American Girl partnered with Majid Al Futtaim Leisure and Entertainment to open two stores in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (I thought it was the capital, but a commenter educated me.) Both stores were closed in early 2020.
The first store was located at the City Centre Mirdif.
The second store was in the Mall of the Emirates.
As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, 3 permanent American Girl stores closed in July 2020.
One store was at the North Point Mall near Atlanta, Georgia. It opened in 2007 and was the first non-flagship American Girl store. It closed in July 2020.
Another store that closed in July 2020 was at Park Meadows near Denver, Colorado. It opened in 2010.
The last store that closed in July 2020 was at the Oak Park Mall near Kansas City, Kansas. It opened in 2010.
In September 2020, the American Girl store that opened in 2015 in the Scottsdale Quarter mall in Scottsdale, Arizona, closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. It never opened after its initial closure in March 2020 due to the start of the pandemic.
In February 2021, the American Girl store in Seattle, Washington closed due to an unknown reason. It opened in the summer of 2011.
In September 2021, the American Girl Outlet in the Tanger Outlet in Hershey, Pennsylvania closed due to an unknown reason. It opened in August 2018.
In September 2022, the American Girl store in Miami, Florida closed due to American Girl choosing not to renew their lease on the store's location. It opened in 2012.
May these stores live on in the memories of American Girl fans everywhere.