American Girl store opens in the Falls

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, Fla. (WSVN) -- There's a store coming to South Florida where little girls can get all dolled up in more ways than one.

If you have a young daughter, it may be her idea of heaven. This is what every little girl dreams of, and it's right here in Miami. This is the American Girl store, and it's a baby doll wonderland.

Let your imagination run wild with Cecile and Marie Grace, Josefina, Addy and Julie. Barbara Luban has traveled out-of-town to visit American Girl stores in the past. "I love American Girl ... I traveled to New York to go to American Girl to shop," she said.

And now these girls have moved to South Florida and are all dolled up for this weekend's grand opening of Florida's American Girl store. For 26 years Molly, Emily and friends have been an absolute hit with young girls.

Customers are already buying American Girls for their little girls. "I'm buying a gift for my daughter for Christmas," said Nicole Gutierrez. "She has a bunch of dolls, the Bitty Baby, Historical Doll and one of the My American Girl dolls."

Kids can dress like their dolls, eat with them here at the store's bistro, dress them up for the beach or prep them for violin or piano class.

And then there are the books, the stories that bring the dolls to life and build a connection between the girl and her American Girl. "The girl can relate to the stories," said Wade Opland, VP of Retail at American Girl, "whether it's Kit Kitchens in 1934, father loses job. Rich stories help the girl understand, but it's really playful."

He says the company received notes from Miami fans who begged for a store. Now here it is, complete with a Bitty Babies section, the doll hair salon, the My American Girl doll section for girls to create their own dolls, much to the delight of parents. "I believe the whole idea of keeping children out of the electronic world and into the fantasy world that we grew up with," Luban said, "and I think a lot of baby boomers like the same concept, that it keeps them little girls a little bit longer."

Though the American Girl store at the Falls is open right now, this weekend is the store's grand opening. It opens Saturday at 9 a.m. and Sunday at 11 a.m.

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