Furniture retailer will take over space at Mockingbird Station

09:58 PM CDT on Monday, May 1, 2006

By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News

One of Dallas' big-name music and video outlets is closing to make way for a new home furnishings store.

The Virgin Megastore at Mockingbird Station will close next month to be replaced by a West Elm store.

The Virgin entertainment store has been an anchor in the complex on North Central Expressway since Mockingbird Station opened in 2000.

But the store recently announced to customers that it is shutting and has started a liquidation sale.

Brokers with United Commercial Realty – which leases retail space in Mockingbird Station – said they have a deal in the works to replace the 25,000-square-foot Virgin store with Dallas' first West Elm location. "We knew that Virgin was leaving, so we've been hunting a replacement," said broker Brandon Harris.

Indeed, Mockingbird Station's owners requested that Virgin depart earlier than planned to make way for the new store.

A spokeswoman for Virgin did not return calls. The company still has a location at Grapevine Mills mall.

Industry trends have made business tough for traditional music stores like Virgin.

CD sales are down as digital music downloads become more popular. And big retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Best Buy Inc. are taking customers away from specialized retailers such as Virgin, said Russ Crupnick, an analyst with NPD Group.

"Music buyers are shopping in more places," he said. "The loyalty to any one retailer is declining."

West Elm is owned by Williams-Sonoma Inc. and got its start in 2002.

The home furnishing and accessories firm has more than a dozen U.S. stores, including one in Houston.

Brokers say that the Mockingbird Station location is set to open this fall.

Technology writer Crayton Harrison contributed to this report.

E-mail stevebrown@dallasnews.com