A PaperCity Editor Who Won’t Let Neiman Marcus ‘Go Lightly’

As a fourth-generation Dallasite, I feel qualified to identify symbols that represent Dallas. For me, it’s Pegasus (the winged horse), Reunion Tower (“the ball”), and Neiman Marcus (“The Mothership”).

In mythology, wherever Pegasus struck his hoof to the earth, a spring would burst forth. When I think about my beloved hometown, Pegasus, who once lit up the skyline in red, perfectly encapsulates the magic of this city. How did (*motions around*) all of this come to be? It was as if Pegasus stamped his hoof in the middle of nowhere and a spring burst forth.

In February, when Saks Global announced their plans to close the downtown Neiman Marcus, I panic-made a series of swan song lunch reservations at The Zodiac in my state of grief. I brought my mom to enjoy Stanley’s Pot Roast and the ambrosia salad one last time. As we descended the escalator after lunch, I found myself unexpectedly emotional, realizing that I would never get to try on wedding dresses at the Neiman’s bridal salon with my mom by my side. I felt robbed of an experience I’d been dreaming of my entire life.

The most important lunch reservation I made with friends was for March 31. We wanted to be there on the last day to say goodbye properly and to pay our respects to the place that houses so many cherished memories. I planned to chat with fellow patrons and document their memories. Originally planned as a funeral, our valediction turned into a jubilant celebration when, three days ago, Saks Global said that the downtown store would remain open through the end of 2025 while they “reimagined” the space.

Since the initial announcement, I’ve read wonderful tributes to Neiman Marcus that detailed the store’s rich history and articulated what losing Neiman Marcus means to Dallas. Deep dives into the epic Fortnight festivities. The designers who visited the downtown store, from Coco Chanel to Oscar de la Renta. Sweeping homages about the ways that Stanley Marcus brought the world to Dallas and Dallas to the world.

I’m just a girl, though. I will always associate the downtown Neiman Marcus with glamor and girlhood. In high school, my best friend and I bought matching Juicy Couture strapless velour minidresses because Jessica Simpson wore one on Newlyweds. Every December, I dressed in tartan and met girlfriends downtown for an ornament exchange. We made the reservation promptly on October 1 after eagerly awaiting the holiday buffet all year. I cannot explain the transcendent medicinal properties associated from sipping consommé around a table with your girlfriends. As Lizzo would say, “It’s called healing.”

So, yesterday, the 10 of us showed up for our reservation, dressed to the nines. We went around the table, sharing memories of our first or favorite purchases from Neiman Marcus. Lilly wore her 2008 Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress from The Store. Lorene carried her mom’s first Chanel bag — a jumbo classic single flap in black. I cosplayed as Holly Golightly in a tweed boatneck LBD from Erdem with low Christian Dior black patent leather pumps. I traded the pearls for a Schiaparelli gold padlock necklace featuring an etching of Place Vendôme that I purchased at the store’s shop-in-shop. Stanley Marcus brought Paris to Dallas, and our own Daniel Roseberry brought Dallas to Paris (the Plano native themed his most recent ready-to-wear collection “Lone Star”). I suppose I have a flair for the dramatic.

I understand that most people don’t shop at the downtown store. Flagships represent more than their foot traffic, though. They exist as the physical representation of the brand’s survival.

I do not need to purchase my favorite Tom Ford lipstick in the cosmetics department or the latest shade of Chanel ballerinas in the shoe department. (NorthPark Center‘s Neiman Marcus serves us quite well.) I hope The Zodiac, the bridal salon, the furrier, and Schiaparelli remain in the downtown location, though. They are the manifestation of the glamor of a bygone era. We make appointments for them and dress for the occasion. We stop by the ladies’ room to powder our noses and reapply our lipstick. So few places remain that feel like a time capsule of something special. Not to sound like Nicole Kidman in an AMC Theatres advertisement, but we actually do come to this place for magic.

Texans adopted the long-standing expression of defiance, “Come and take it,” during the Texas Revolution, and I can’t help but recognize that mantra successfully utilized as a rallying cry here, too. A canceled funeral, we hoisted our tiny teacups of consommé in the air, declaring, “We did it!”

In Texan Wes Anderson’s iconic film Rushmore, the protagonist Max Fischer declares, “I saved Latin. What did you ever do?” I’ve been thinking about that line this week and borrowed it (with an important modification) for an Instagram caption. I saved Neiman Marcus. What did you ever do?

Ok, so, *I* didn’t save Neiman Marcus, and *you* didn’t save Neiman Marcus. But, we didn’t *not* save Neiman Marcus, either?!

“Save The Shop Around The Corner, and you will save your soul.” Thank you, Saks Global, for hearing our battle cry and giving us at least one more Christmas at the downtown Neiman Marcus. It means more to us than you could have possibly imagined.