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LOS ANGELES–Sometimes, patience and persistence are good things.Caruso Affiliated, owner and developer of the Grove, has beencourting American Girl Place since before the retail andentertainment center opened its doors in 2002. The wait is over asthe company, which is run under a division of Mattel Inc and catersto girls 7-11, has agreed on 40,000 sf. Terms were not disclosed onthe amount or length of the lease, but the Grove location will beAmerican Girl's third location. It joins high-end spaces in Chicagoand New York, where more than 10 million girls have visited andshopped, according to a Caruso company report.The American Girlspace will feature the company's full line of products, whichinclude books, historical dolls – which begin at $84 – a clothingline, and even, gulp, an opportunity for girls to get their doll amakeover at the store's Doll Hair Salon. Another feature of thestores are the tea parties at a café and live performances of TheAmerican Girls Revue, an original musical, which has sold more than300,000 tickets at the Chicago and New York locations.Arepresentative with Caruso tells Globest.com that American Girl isideal for the 575,000-sf Grove, which is located adjacent to theFarmers Market. "It's a perfect fit," says Jennifer Gordon, vicepresident of marketing, with Caruso. Gordon also handles marketingat the Grove and says that the Grove already has a park area, whichfrequently brings in between "100-400 kids for liveperformances."The deal brings the Grove to 100% leased as AmericanGirl will fill space vacated by FAO Schwartz, after the companyfiled bankruptcy. The center is anchored by fashion staples BananaRepublic, Nordstrom, Gap, J. Crew and Pacific Sunwear and specialtyoutlets Barnes & Noble, Crate & Barrel, Apple Computers andNike Women.