H&M opening SouthPark store

It's official: After years of rumor and anticipation, Swedish fast fashion H&M retailer said Tuesday that it plans to open a SouthPark store.

The 20,000-square-foot store will be H&M's third in the Charlotte area, following stores in Carolina Place and Northlake Mall. The Northlake store is open, while the Carolina Place store is set to open Jan. 16.

Here's a little about the store, from H&M: "The new store will include full-priced collections for ladies, men, young ladies and young men, with separate “store within store” sections for accessories, lingerie, and its plus-size line, H&M+." There will also be a kid's clothing section.

No opening date was announced.

H&M's announcement doesn't include any details on where in the mall a store will be, and a check of building permits show there don't appear to be any filed yet for the project. But employees at the Hallmark store near Macy's told me last month that they had been told the store would be closed to make way for an H&M.

At 20,000 square feet, the H&M would have to take over some adjoining storefronts as well. Update: A SouthPark spokeswoman said the store will be in the Macy's wing, which is also getting a new American Girl store next year.