Sherwood Plaza History
April, 1960 – Sherwood Plaza Opens
The original anchor tenants were a 60,000 SF Zayre Department Store plus their headquarters and warehouse, Elm Farm Foods and WT Grant. When the shopping center opened, they and Shopper’s World were the only shopping plazas in all of Metrowest, preceding the Natick Mall by over a decade!
1972
Sherwood Plaza East started as three individual buildings that were later connected together to become a “strip”. The first stores were Merchant’s Tire, Child World and Wonder-bowl Ten Pin bowling, with an early IHOP occupying the “pad site” next to Kaufman Carpet right on Route 9 as seen in these early photos.
1980’s
Sherwood Plaza and Sherwood Plaza East experienced a burst of growth alongside the town of Natick during this decade. Retailers such as Highland Superstores, Leejay Bed & Bath and Flick Multi Screen Movie Theatres were some of the attractive uses in the center providing goods and services to a growing family demographic. Sherwood Plaza and Sherwood Plaza East embarked on to a large re-development that spanned the entire property – improving the façade, roofline (which had previously been individual stores) and signage.
Grand Opening of Taymor Shoes
Early 1990’s
With continued growth inside the center and out, new tenants like Discovery Zone, and new “Big Box” stores like Office Max joined the tenant roster. Elm Farm Foods turned into Heartland, a Purity Supreme brand, and F & M Distributors, another big box – super drug store joined the center. Zayre was purchased by Ames and Leejay Bed & Bath expanded.
Later 1990’s into the 2000’s
Economic growth stimulated the expansion of the larger box stores in the suburbs. A golden time for shopping centers and retailers as the internet became mainstream and everyone purchased computers for their home offices and cell phones. Customers could shop and be in touch with everyone at the same time!
Christmas Tree Shops Opened in 2001
Dress Barn Opened in 2002
Loehmann’s Opened in 2003
Dicks Opened in 2004
LA Fitness Opened in 2014
New stores today include Dellaria Salons, Skechers and Hot Doogy! A mix of local, regional and national tenants continue to come to Sherwood Plaza and Sherwood East. In 2015 L.A. Fitness joined the mix, and in late 2020, ABI Labs II, a 68,000 SF lab building, joined the tenancy with the first mixed use component to the center. Sherwood Plaza continues to update and evolve to offer products and services in an everchanging market.
