The original facility (spelled Shoppers' World) is of historical significance as one of the first suburban shopping malls in the United States upon opening in 1951; though it had a central courtyard and covered walkways, it was not fully indoor.

[3] This futuristic concept mall was designed to be the mecca of suburban shopping between Boston and Worcester, as the area around its original property remains today.[when?]

The dome was visible from the air and was used on aeronautical charts as a visual reporting point for aircraft approaching Boston's Logan Airport.

Originally called The Cinema, the house contained a large orchestra seating section, a balcony, and a full stage with a fly area for curtain, scenery, and lighting grid.

Early stage crews at The Cinema are credited with coining the now-standard industry term Best Boy to describe an assistant to the chief electrician.

The southern end contained a permanent water fountain with synchronized colored lights and a garden area with seasonal plantings of flowers, picnic tables, and sun umbrellas.

During the holidays, the mall put up decorations that included several giant wooden soldiers around the inner concourse, and artistic flower arrangements and banners.

Shoppers' World was the first shopping center to have a musical water fountain show, a feature famously used by The Grove at Farmers Market in Los Angeles.

Jordan Marsh's original main store, located on the south end, had a remote underground entry point in the middle of the parking lot near the bus stop.

Shoppers could enter a small enclosure and walk down two flights of stairs to arrive in the lower level of the Jordan Marsh store.

The large yellow smokestack on the outer west side originally had "Sears" written on it but was removed when the store moved to the newer Natick Mall in 1965.

In 1983, Shopper's World was sold to Melvin Simon and Robert Campeau, who proposed to replace it with a new enclosed, multi-floor structure with four anchor stores.

The new Shopper's World (the possessive "s" was changed to the singular form), a strip mall that features 781,507 sq ft (72,604 m2) of retail space.

The center is also home to the first HomeSense in the United States and opened alongside Sierra Trading Post in August 2017, replacing a Sports Authority store.