The fall of retailers means doomsday for malls

[mystery-ak]

Business
The fall of retailers means doomsday for malls

By Jonathon Trugman

May 14, 2017 | 2:12am

American retail culture may well have reached a tipping point.

Major department stores are floundering about like fish in a rapidly draining pond after reporting dreadful earnings last week.

The time-honored multigenerational giants like Macy’s, Sears and JCPenney are all looking at a dramatically different future.

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http://nypost.com/2017/05/14/the-fall-of-retailers-means-doomsday-for-malls/

[Fishrrman]

One store that's always crowded at the local mall is the Apple Store.

Then again, the Microsoft Store (not far away) has twice the floor space -- and is usually devoid of customers...

[truth_seeker]

Overbuilt retail malls, will be converted to the highest and best use, as of today.

There are big corporations that own major malls. They will have already been exploring this.

Malls themselves will be consolidating. A regional freeway with four centers, will convert to three or two.

The vacant sites will be converted to residential, apartments or condos, or to auto dealer malls, etc.

 

[geronl]

Malls can survive, just hold events. Like turning the whole mall into a Laser-Tag Arena for an evening, or paintball or something. lol

[geronl]

A mall could become a big private or charter school, for instance

[Applewood]

The malls themselves brought their own destruction.  Thanks to several well-publicized incidents, people no longer feel safe in such a confined space.  Malls have not been able to deal effectively with the gangstas and feral youth.

It's true that online shopping has become more popular, but there are still some things I would rather see in person before buying. For example, I need to go shopping for a table lamp.  I looked at some online, but I'd like to look at it "in the flesh" to see if it would fit my table and go with my "decor" such as it is.

What are thriving in my neck of the woods are the new open-air "malls."  They are actually the shopping centers of old, but on a larger scale.  At one of these newfangled malls where I live  there are several stores that used to be tenants in the traditional closed-in mall about a mile away.    I believe the rent in these shopping centers is a lot less than the traditional malls , too. 

Perhaps some of these stores might be able to save themselves if they were not in a closed-in mall.  Go back to the old days when the stores were out in the open.

[roamer_1]

It's true that online shopping has become more popular, but there are still some things I would rather see in person before buying. For example, I need to go shopping for a table lamp.  I looked at some online, but I'd like to look at it "in the flesh" to see if it would fit my table and go with my "decor" such as it is.

Me too - For example, everything. There's something to holding a thing in your hand, feeling the heft of it, the woven texture of cloth... One can examine fit and finish on the very piece you are about to buy. That is invaluable information to me, that cannot be ascertained online, even remotely.

I just recently bought a pair of cowboy boots online. The first time ever that I have bought shoes of any kind sight unseen. And fit is the single most important aspect of buying a shoe - Cowboy boots more so than others. And for me, the experience is fraught with peril. It is insanity to me to buy boots without trying them on. But, it's all I've got. Even here, in the heart of cowboy country, selection in stores for these boots is remarkably thin. Especially in larger sizes.

[Cripplecreek]

Me too - For example, everything. There's something to holding a thing in your hand, feeling the heft of it, the woven texture of cloth... One can examine fit and finish on the very piece you are about to buy. That is invaluable information to me, that cannot be ascertained online, even remotely.

I just recently bought a pair of cowboy boots online. The first time ever that I have bought shoes of any kind sight unseen. And fit is the single most important aspect of buying a shoe - Cowboy boots more so than others. And for me, the experience is fraught with peril. It is insanity to me to buy boots without trying them on. But, it's all I've got. Even here, in the heart of cowboy country, selection in stores for these boots is remarkably thin. Especially in larger sizes.

Our "old mall" is booming and our "new mall is fading fast. The old mall is located right next to a major highway, has many restaurants available on the complex, and there are things like doctor and dentist's offices as well as attorneys and other businesses mixed in with the traditional mall stores.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Our big mall is booming. I think kids are just going to newer and better malls these days.

[roamer_1]

Our "old mall" is booming and our "new mall is fading fast. The old mall is located right next to a major highway, has many restaurants available on the complex, and there are things like doctor and dentist's offices as well as attorneys and other businesses mixed in with the traditional mall stores.

Our new 'mall', Hutton Plaza, is probably 5 miles north of town, and is sucking the life out of downtown and the mall. Just desserts, I figure, as the malls sucked the life out of downtown in the first place - the newer mall sent the old mall under. It's now a tech center, after many many years of laying nearly empty. The new mall is anchored by Herberger's and JC Penny's... But Hutton Plaza, a huge open air complex, is anchored by all the big box stores, and the new mall is suffering the same fate as downtown, full of kitchy boutiquey stores with low volume... I can't imagine rents are  doing well there... And downtown is nearly half empty.

[Applewood]

Our new 'mall', Hutton Plaza, is probably 5 miles north of town, and is sucking the life out of downtown and the mall. Just desserts, I figure, as the malls sucked the life out of downtown in the first place - the newer mall sent the old mall under. It's now a tech center, after many many years of laying nearly empty. The new mall is anchored by Herberger's and JC Penny's... But Hutton Plaza, a huge open air complex, is anchored by all the big box stores, and the new mall is suffering the same fate as downtown, full of kitchy boutiquey stores with low volume... I can't imagine rents are  doing well there... And downtown is nearly half empty.

Downtown Pittsburgh is dead as a retail hub.  At one time there were five department stores. The last one closed last year and is being renovated into a  combination office space, condos and small retail lIke maybe a boutique or two.  Much of downtown is being converted into condos and hotels, and a few high-end restaurants have opened up. Great if you want to live downtown, but where are you going to shop?  No supermarkets, no major retailers.   You have to drive to the suburbs.

[Free Vulcan]

The model for the traditional mall just doesn't work anymore. It used to be they could charge the high rents and the high prices because malls often brought big city items to small town economies that couldn't be gotten anywhere else without driving hundreds of miles. Now you have Amazon and such.

[roamer_1]

Downtown Pittsburgh is dead as a retail hub.  At one time there were five department atores. The last one closed last year and is being renovated into a  combination office space, condos and small retail lIke maybe a boutique or two.  Much of downtown is being converted into condos and hotels, and a few high-end restaurants have opened up. Great if you want to live downtown, but where are you going to shop?  No supermarkets, no major retailers.   You have to drive to the suburbs.

Our downtown may just have a shot at new life. The truck bypass has taken some of the pressure off of Main Street - I know that sounds counter to retail, but it may actually help. The big problem downtown is parking, and if they turn 1st Ave West into a one-way south, and 1st Ave East into a one-way north, with Main still being two-way, they might just be able to handle two-lane traffic again.

With 2 lane traffic on Main, and two lanes (one-way) on the avenues to either side, we just might get back our western-town-typical angled parking instead of parallel, which would double parking downtown.

They're talking about it.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

The model for the traditional mall just doesn't work anymore. It used to be they could charge the high rents and the high prices because malls often brought big city items to small town economies that couldn't be gotten anywhere else without driving hundreds of miles. Now you have Amazon and such.

No it works, we're just overmalled as a nation. The biggest glitziest malls tend to take action away from the smaller malls.