This family- and pet-friendly shopping center is a true community destination.
At Brookfield Properties, our malls are no longer just places to shop — they’re places for people to gather, communities to connect, and consumers to engage. The SoNo Collection, located in Norwalk, Connecticut, is a perfect example of how we’ve reimagined the traditional shopping center experience to create a true lifestyle destination.
Opened in 2019, this three-story mall was designed to blur the line between retail and leisure in order to reestablish a connection between commerce, community, and people. Spearheaded by Stantec, an architecture firm specializing in transformative placemaking, the retail destination represents a true pivot in retail design, according to Matthew Seebeck, senior general manager of The SoNo Collection.
“Our concourses are broad, with three-level sight lines, providing retailer exposure from any level at any angle,” Seebeck explains. “Our design brings in more natural light than I’ve experienced in an enclosed shopping center before. We are eminently walkable, with each concourse providing a short, comfortable, carpeted stroll between our two anchor stores.” The concourses, which guide visitors to a series of destinations, are lined with stopping points that serve as places to relax, interact, and sightsee — complete with comfortable seating and tables to recharge devices.
The many daily visitors at The SoNo Collection include dogs and their owners. “In a market where dogs count as the .5 in the 4.5 average household members, we’re pup friendly here,” Seebeck says, noting that shoppers appreciate the convenience and safety of bringing their dogs with them as opposed to leaving them alone in a car.
Dog owners can bring their four-legged friends to shopping center common areas, dog-friendly stores, restaurant patios, and The SoNo Collection’s dog park, where the mall hosts doggy meet and greets on select Sundays during the summer. The SoNo Collection is also adjacent to the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk — which features its own attached park — via a short walking path.
Strategically located at the intersection of Interstate 95 and Route 7, The SoNo Collection has benefited from pandemic-fueled migration into Connecticut. “We’re in the thick of a city in resurgence, which was accelerated by an influx of New Yorkers during COVID,” Seebeck says, referring to the estimated 50,000 people who left New York City for Connecticut during the height of lockdown.
“We’re in the thick of a city in resurgence, which was accelerated by an influx of New Yorkers during COVID.”
—Matthew Seebeck, The SoNo Collection senior general manager
The bustling shopping center boasts 70 stores, including Apple, Warby Parker, Zara, Sephora, and anchor stores Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s. According to Seebeck, five new stores are currently under construction, with dozens more planned for next year. Offering street-level dining, sit-down restaurants include Yard House, Pinstripes, Uncle Seven, and Nordstrom bistro concept Bazille.
Host to more than 400 events and activations per year — from weekly Zumba classes to summer concert series, and from small business lending coaching to early childhood development fairs — The SoNo Collection is a true community hub.
Norwalk has long been known as a city that fosters artists and incubates art, and The SoNo Collection has followed suit. “Norwalk has a robust public arts commission, and we are pleased to bring that connection into the center in partnership with community organizations and local artists like Duvian Montoya — whose mural lives on our Mall Level 3 next to Abercrombie & Fitch,” Seebeck says. “We have permanent installations from national artists like Matthew Hoffman, Samantha French, and Jen Lewin that are a combination of murals, sculpture, and hybrid electronic installations. In addition, we have a partnership with the Norwalk Art Space, a gallery and collective in Norwalk, which showcases a rotating gallery in our M&T Bank Magnificent Room.”
Among the attributes that set this modern marketplace apart is its stellar staff, explains Seebeck. “We have a team that embraces a shared vision of excellence, customer service, and experience, and takes the necessary steps together to inspire a sense of awe to each guest. This is our competitive advantage within our market — not just what we do best at Brookfield Properties, namely cleanliness and safety — but to strive to exceed each guest’s expectations every time they visit.”
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