2025 Top 10 Retail Center Experiences: No. 7 Galleria Dallas
When the holiday season kicks off in Dallas, one of the first questions that gets asked in northern Texas households is, “When are we going to go skating at the Galleria?”
Blading ‘round the rink underneath the mall’s 95-foot-tall Christmas Tree — festooned with more than 400,000 lights and thousands of ornaments — is the holiday event in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro. Each year more than 15,000 people take part in the tradition.
“The skating center has been upgraded and refreshed with a Texas Chalet vibe. The tree got upgraded with programmable lights that we can use to do illumination celebrations,” said Galleria’s general manager Angie Freed, who has worked at the mall since 2009. “It’s going to be better than ever.”
Also new at what is widely considered one of the top malls in the country is greenspace. Trademark, the mall’s operator, created a new plaza across where kids can play while their parents grab a glass of wine at the nearby North Italia restaurant.
Galleria maintains long and close ties with Dallas charities and hosts collection programs with a different one each month. Recent promotions were held for the Girl Scouts, Operation Kindness, The Salvation Army, and the Dallas Junior League.
More than 12 million people a year visit Galleria, and Trademark reports that since it took over management of the center in 2018, it has increased sales at the property by 81%.
Longtime Galleria veteran Angie Freed credits Trademark for revving up the mall’s experience engine to higher levels.
“Trademark considers everything in the building,” she noted. “There’s no better placemaker in the industry than [Trademark CEO] Terry Montesi. He’s brought his unique vision to the building."
