Mall Closings

[braumeister]

My town had a dead mall for maybe a decade. It was featured in a national study of deadpan malls. Today it is being rebuilt into a new vibrant shopping and living area.

Same here. Nice to see that it's possible to revive them.

 

[brett]

If any of our malls closed I would not miss them nor would I really care. Most of the stores seem to carry the same merchandise and many are essentially self serve.

Convenience, selection, and price have moved much of my retail spend to the web. Sears is bankrupt and closing where we live. Have not been in a store for years. Tried to buy something online from them about five years ago and gave up. Their site was a disaster compared to the competiion.

 

[Chuckanut]

Same here. Nice to see that it's possible to revive them.

I would add that I live in an area with a strong economy and low unemployment. Though interestingly wages have not gone up much. Maybe that is why so many stores have help wanted signs out for months?

The new mall that is replacing the dead mall is much more than a mall. It has office space, apartments, stores and supposedly will have 'public areas' that will make people feel good about being there - an area for musical performances, a place for kids to play a bit, outdoor seating for cafés and restaurants, and, most important, an artistic fountain. We'll see how well they do the public space.

Interestingly, it will also have a brand new [-]Amazon Store[/-] err..... Whole Foods store.

 

[HGTVfan]

Same here. Nice to see that it's possible to revive them.

Same here, too. We had a local mall that struggled for years. Finally it was torn down early this year and redeveloped into a shopping/entertainment area. There are very few clothing stores but a number of home stores that I love - Home Goods, Kirklands, Tuesday Morning.

There’s an organic grocery store and a new theatre will open next week and there are quite a few service-type businesses like LA Fitness, a hand massage salon and a salon only for lashes (who knew?).

In general it is much nicer but I’ll miss the a/c when our Florida summer rolls around next year.

 

[kgtest]

One thing that would help malls IMHO is to really celebrate Christmas. I mean not just fancy decorations, but also to take into account the religious and spiritual aspects of it.

A big local mall near me has professionally decorated trees, lots of professionally decorated areas, Santa photos starting an $25, a big gingerbread house kids can walk through, etc. etc. etc. Everything but the spiritual aspects of the season.

It does not have to be "in your face" Christianity or ignore the secular aspects of Christmas like [-]Saint Nick[/-] Santa Claus. But, there is a good feeling about 'Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men' that has been replaced with "Buy more stuff to be happy". They have stripped the season of all its warmth and goodness. IOW, Christmas does not feel like Christmas at these malls. So why go there? Shop online instead.

My 2¢. Take what you wish and leave the rest.

We are frowned upon if we even say the word Christmas in my DS preschool classes. Ahh how the times have changed.

Globalization has effected shopping malls and many other things negatively. I am kind of happy I dont need to go to a mall for obvious things but its much harder and vast to browse randomly online.