Shopping Malls Are Becoming Extinct

The socioeconomic significance of malls is seen through visual culture, where the mall has become a place to meet up with friends and family, on any day of the week – weekends being the busiest. Hence “the mall has become a centre of life, where the most memorable moments, holidays and birthdays are spent, dinners are held all under one roof” (Stokrocki 80). In Toronto the two largest malls I explored were the Toronto Eaton’s Centre and Yorkdale Mall – both of which included over 200 stores, eateries, rainforest cafés, and a movie theatre. However what was evident about these two malls apart from the rest included anti social behaviours despite families being grouped together. Although people were together, the sense of togetherness was plastic just like the manikins of store displays. It appeared as though families were shopping just as an excuse to go out as a “family” even though children, teens and adults would disperse into the stores of their choice and meet up at the end for a takeout meal, contacting each other through their phones. In addition to this observation included the fact that families shopping with other families or family friends were more of an exploitation of social and economic class. People being able to spend at stores like Michael Kors, Coach, Tory Burch, Abercrombie & Fitch, Lululemon, Kate Spade and many more, without worrying about going over budget meant being affluent. What really needs to be questioned is the idea that if these people spend at

To keep a local suburban regional shopping mall from reaching its decline, there are a few things that must be done to keep your mall relevant in today’s society. One must spend time and money during the maturity phase to keep with today’s trends. Getting more or newer department or anchor stores may help to draw in business. Then fill the other empty spaces with specialty stores, offering products that consumers can’t get anywhere else. Another option for managers is to find a niche in the community that will draw consumers in.

In “Enclosed. Encyclopedic. Endured: The Mall of America,” David Guterson’s description concerning the Mall of America researches into numerous surfaces that are entrenched throughout the mall both physically and psychologically. David Guterson claims that the Mall is a psychological impact on the applicants inside. He makes this claim through his portrayals of the shopping mall’s: exterior and interior environment, the people he interviews, and the malls many titles.

Through his piece “Enclosed. Encyclopedic. Endured: the Mall of America.” David Guterson shares his experience of the Mall of America as it opened and its effects of the American culture. From sharing statistics about the amount of jobs available, the number of parking spots, or how much cash is dispersed each week from just the ATMs; Guterson allows readers to feel the massive scale of the mall. He shares stories of the people he met and his own views on the mall, and what it says about America and its people’s values. Guterson makes it clear that Americans have become too absorbed with the thoughts of materialistic belongings; and a mall, such as the Mall of America, only makes those thoughts that much worse and destroys the people’s

The North Hanover Mall is an average shopping center with various stores and small attractions. Typically, the mall is not over-crowded; however, during the evenings and weekends it is well-traveled. There are the average chain stores such as JCPenny’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Hallmark, and Bath and Body Works. Likewise, there are some smaller, lesser known stores, for example, a few nail and hair salons, cafes, a pizza shop, and a sports apparel store. In general, there is a diverse mix of people shopping, from ethnicity to ages and group sizes. The night I choose to do my social observation the mall was much busier than I had anticipated. There was a Halloween event and an antique car show; both circumstances brought more individuals than usual into the shopping complex.

After reading, “Enclosed. Encyclopedic. Endured: The Mall Of America.” I’ve came to the conclusion that at one point in everyone's lives, we’ve all looked at malls as if they were something magnificent. The way malls have been portrayed over the years, they are practically the next best thing to an amusement park.

According, the United State Census Bureau, the U.S. population is increasing, every eight seconds a child is born. With the population increasing sort of rapidly the construction of new neighborhoods it is going to be necessary to house these prospering families. Also, the establishment of stores are going to be needed. Therefore, neighborhood stores are going to become available and malls too, but they both are going to vary in certain aspects. Neighborhood stores are stores that provides accommodations to the locals. Malls, on the other hand, are large buildings made of multiple competitive retails stores. Nevertheless, neighborhood stores and malls seem very similar, but when looking at their square footages, remoteness from home, and marketability, they are quite different.

In Anne Norton’s, "The Signs of Shopping", Anne Norton, a Political Science Professor at the University of Pennsylvania determines the ways in which malls, catalogs, and home shopping networks create our sense of “identity”. In the first part of her essay, “Shopping at the mall”, Anne analyzes the ways in which malls and catalogs “tell you who you are by selling you what they want.” Anne first states what she believes the mall was created to be; she believes it was created to be an impulsive gathering place and place of centralized public activity. Anne then goes on to state how she believes the mall has come to exploit the lifestyles and identities of people, especially those of young women. Anne makes the claim that the mall appears to be

Is the death of American malls avoidable? Based on the article “Amazon.com is a 21st Century deal with the devil” written by Amy Koss of the Los Angeles Times, websites that sell clothing and other merchandise may impact American malls and other stores but it could be avoidable. Modern day stores rarely have up to fashion clothing or accessories that sooth the teen of this era. Malls have to step up the game against online stores by getting up to date fashion styles. Most stores like Rolex, GUCCI, Supreme, and other famous brands should be in more local stores to attract people. Most Designer brands are not in most local areas. A more common kid friendly brand such as Supreme would be the easiest one way ticket to coolsville. Another important

The Internet has changed the way we do virtually everything, including the way we shop. However, shopping is not the only thing that has changed. In the last decade we have changed the way, we apply for loans, study, and even plan a vacation. Doing any of these things would have been impossible a few decades ago. At present, online banking, paying bills, ordering new services, and shopping online have become part of our daily lives. Traditional brick-and-mortar stores have been around much longer than online stores, but we cannot deny that online shopping is giving the traditional stores competition. Many consumers still choose to shop at regular brick-and-mortar stores because they like to see and

The combining of mall shopping experiences and the theatrical touch provides a promising expectation of success. While this is not the first time such an experience has been attempted in malls, it is the first on such a grand scale with so many high caliber theatrical professionals involved. As of 2014, The Westfield Group, out of Australia and New Zealand, separated from its international holdings and in effect created The Westfield Corporation that focuses on its international

Also, shopping mall popularity is shrinking, with some retailers focusing on and consumers preferring stand-alone locations similar to Kohl’s. Over the

The proliferation of online shopping has significantly altered the retail landscape. While the physical store continues to exist - and even thrive in many cases - the risk of turning irrelevant remains. Millennials - who will constitute a significant percentage of the consumer population in the future - prefer the convenience of online and mobile shopping. When they occasionally do step into the store, it is more likely to experience the product than complete a purchase.

In the early 1960’s and 1970’s, shopping mall had gained popularity as a tool to revitalize derelict and abandoned areas within urban core. Shopping mall was built to rejuvenate downtown main street or a once popular traditional shopping street. In the later period of twentieth century, there was a lifestyle shift whereby customers were increasingly demanding and knowledgeable and expected better shopping environment with better service and interaction. Shopping mall was expected to be accommodating for their needs of basic necessities as well as leisure.

According to Northen (1984), the reasons of renovation of shopping mall are functional obsolescence of the centre, change in surrounding demographic pattern, new competition with nearby shopping centre, and withdrawal of major anchor tenant.