A TreeHouse for Dallas
Home Depot for hipsters branches out from Austin to Dallas for second location
It’s been called the “Whole Foods of home improvement” and “Home Depot with a green conscience,” and soon Dallas will have one. TreeHouse, a sustainable home improvement store, is opening its first location outside of Austin.
Slated for an early 2017 opening, the TreeHouse will anchor the new Hill Shopping Center, at 75 and Walnut Hill Lane, which will be “refreshed” and “revived” by Cypress Equities over the next few years. The area is aiming to become a retail and entertainment destination, according to a release, helped by its proximity to the Walnut Hill/Presbyterian Hospital DART station.
But back to the store. Known for its focus on eco-friendly solutions to home decor and design, TreeHouse specializes in things such as rainwater harvesting and solar panels. It will be the first retailer for Tesla’s highly anticipated Powerwall home battery, and it is one of the best-performing locations for Nest smart-home products.
“TreeHouse was born in Texas, and it is going to grow up in Texas,” says TreeHouse CEO and co-founder Jason Ballard in the release. “Dallas was an easy choice for the next location. The Dallas community has been supporting us for four years, and now it’s our turn to give back.”
World-renowned (and San Antonio-based) Lake|Flato Architects is designing the Dallas TreeHouse, so expect it to look like anything but a big-box store.
“Many people have said to us ‘Sure, TreeHouse works in Austin, but what about other places?’” Ballard says. “We look forward to showing that quality, beauty, health, a good earth, and good homes are universal values.”
TreeHouse first opened in 2011, on South Lamar in Austin, selling an assortment of products that promoted healthy and sustainable spaces, with an eye toward design. Now its a full-service, home-improvement store, offering “everything tied to thoughtful building.”
In August 2015, the company closed a $16 million funding round to help, in part, with expansion. Its biggest investor is Container Store co-founder Garrett Boone, who, according to Inc., likes to say to Ballard, “If TreeHouse doesn’t end up working, there is no truth in the universe.”