The former St. Nicholas has a more dated, straight-through design with a mostly concrete urban open space on its roof, along with little-used first-floor entrances to some of the businesses.

[4] Work began on the St. Nicholas centre on 26 October 1983, when the foundation stone was laid by the then Lord Provost of the city, Alexander C Collie.

The centre was officially opened on 3 October 1985 by Lord Provost Henry Rae with total retail space covering 96,000 sq ft (8,900 m2).

Bon Accord and St. Nicholas added several stores in the years that followed, including many brands not previously present in Aberdeen.

In March 2009 a major facelift of the St. Nicholas centre was completed which consisted of new flooring, lighting, and fixtures and fittings to freshen up the dated interior.

Re-opened in November 2011, the area, now known as "Food Terrace", was re-configured into four larger catering units/restaurants each with internal and external seating out in the shopping centre.

The deal worth £189 million was completed in October 2013 with F&C REIT, now BMO Real Estate Partners, taking control of the centre.

[16] In July 2021, the council approved plans for a four-screen cinema which would be built inside an existing shop unit in the centre.