The RISE and FALL of Malls in America

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Script: Jordan Tucker
Editor: Sam Askew
Lead Editor: Kirsten Stanley
Project Manager: Lurana McClure Rodríguez
Host: Levi Hildebrand

[UncleJoeLITE]

Malls in Australia are going strong on the whole. Nothing like this.
Usually, because they were built somewhere useful, not as a destination.

[GenevieveJ]

There was a mall in Quebec named Fleur-de-Lys that was slowly dying. Now, there's a university inside the mall, and there are plans for apartments, a hotel, and a small park with numerous trees instead of a huge parking lot. The investors have expressed their hope that these changes will positively impact people's lives.

[creeper]

Living in Prague (a capital city in Europe), almost every single mall is built on or near a metro station, so when you're getting off the metro, you walk next to or even through a mall, which lures more people in

[jvttsm]

Singapore represent here. For a small city state, we have 170+ malls all around the island and they are doing great. Almost all are connected or at least near a public transport hub. Heartland malls are filled with essential stores and the Luxury malls are all concentrated on the more touristy stretch.

[Mowntandewey]

Growing up, it was the movie theater that was one of the anchor stores of my mall.

[gkssk]

In South Korea, most of the time the malls have their own subway exits meaning you don't have to walk far at all to get to them. One of the most famous, the Lotte Tower, has a concert hall, cinemas, an aquarium and apartments

[SocksAndPuppets]

I would like to recommend a video from 8 months ago from Adam Something called "Why US malls are dying, (and European Malls Aren't). It has similar themes to this video, but with a European perspective on the issue.

People just assume this is the fault of online shopping, amazon, etc... but it's a more complex issue, and online shopping is just one facet.

People still value being able to see products in person and handle them before buying them. There's a big market for in-person shopping - especially for clothes, shoes, and products where the tactile feel of the thing is important. People still like getting out of the house, shopping together socially, getting a bite to eat etc.

One of the biggest issues is urban planning. If you have to drive for an hour, pay for fuel, park... You're making it "a day out" rather than just something you can quickly drop in and pick something up. If your mall is in the middle of a dense urban area, where people can walk to it... with good transport links, it's very different. Make it easy to visit, and people will visit. This is one of the biggest reasons why European Malls are doing better - they're easy to get to.

If you make it hard to get to the mall, then people will shop online, even if the experience is worse. The annoyance of not being able to see your items in person first, sifting through low quality amazon drek... if it's less frustrating than travel, people will stay home.



I live in the UK, "the mall" is a 15 minute bus ride away, 25 minutes on foot. We visit the mall about twice a month when we need to pick something up. We went last weekend, picked up some clothes, ordered some spectacles, grabbed a meal, did some grocery shopping, then returned home, all within a couple hours.

[AwesomeVidzChannel]

I always found it weird how most American malls looked like they were built in the middle of nowhere. Just a big building with a huge parking lot and nothing around it.
Most malls where I live (Europe) are in the center of the city.

[thatonneguy]

I'm born and raised twin cities, MN. The Mall of America has always been seen as a pointless tourist trap. Locals will almost NEVER shop there because the prices are just outrageous... for no reason. It's the same shit you get at target/walmart, which is right down the street, or on amazon.

[glob]

One major difference I’ve noticed between malls in North America and Asia (China & S.Korea) is the quality in the food offerings. Malls in Asia have food that attracts people to the malls who then shop since they’re there anyway. Here in North America mall food courts are filled with below-average fast food chains that people only eat at because they’re hostage to the malls being in an area void of better food options.

[estycki]

I remember there were actually a lot of small businesses in malls when I was a kid, which was neat to explore. Today every mall is the same and has the same crap.

[MisterAnonymousOwO]

Malls here in the Philippines tend to have groceries as the anchor stores, so anyone planning to get their weekly or monthly groceries will shop there as well

[Immudzen]

I was actually going to say that malls in Germany seem to be doing quite well however they are really different than the USA. Many of the large train stations are also malls. While waiting for your train you can get your grocery shopping done, pick up a book, buy clothes, get some food etc. Also the malls that are in cities are really in the city and not surrounded by parking lots. They are well connected to transit and integrate with all the shops around them. You might not even notice when you walk in and out of mall sometimes.

[Oceanic]

I remember towards the end of malls being popular, they were becoming less of an inviting destination for customers, as malls were setting things up for customers to just shop and get out. They didn't want shoppers lingering around. They purposely removed more seating so customers would spend less time sitting and more time spending money.

[Elliewaffles]

you forgot to mention how malls nowadays are built so you just go there and buy, it has this hostile architecture that is not very welcoming or has signs saying no loitering, I mean no even teenagers are welcome to go out with friends, i’ve personally seen how security guards won’t let them get in because they have skateboards

[StopWhatYerDoing]

One of the oldest malls in my state is still hanging on. There's not a lot going on, but they are going with the less traditional mall plan. There's an old pizza place that's been there since the 80s, a bar, some doctor's offices, a church, a thrift store, and a dress shop. And this summer, we're supposed to be getting a Goodwill center. Not just shopping, but there will be a Goodwill Excel center, donation center, and a few other arms of Goodwill taking over the old Sears area. It make me happy that this old mall is still alive and growing. Especially since the whole place is still stuck in the 80s with neon and colorful tiles spewed about.

[morgankw]

The downfall of public hangout places is a detriment to us all. Unfortunately, the US doesn't have the public plazas so common in Europe to replace them.

[new-lviv]

Here in Lviv, Ukraine, a rather modest size mall was open near historic center and it is very popular. Also, it has underground parking that doubles down as shelter during attacks, who could have predict that.

[cosmindvd]

In Romania malls are placed well, near train stations, office buildings, city centers, the most busy places, you can easily go by walking or with public transport, malls are thriving here.

[TrungNguyen-kvls]

Malls in Southern California are shifting into food malls. They make it so the good food and drinks draw the crowds to the mall. The Westfield UTC mall in San Diego is a good example of this.