Ah, the mall. As a Zillennial, I can proudly say I was able to fully enjoy the fruits of the mall growing up & before the pandemic. Unfortunately, many malls fell to their knees during the pandemic, closing 80% of their shops, stores, and attractions, leaving nothing more than a Macy’s, a Cinnabon, and maybe a Bath and Body Works. The fall of department stores, like Sears, has also contributed to the demise of malls and left gaping holes of real estate in its absence. What once was a desirable safe haven in suburbs, cities, and off-the-highway towns is now… a ghost town. That is, unless you live in a major area where your mall has been able to keep their doors open and thrive! (Shoutout Woodfield Mall, Mall of America, Easton Town Center, and all of the outlet malls)
Nonetheless, the malls open today lack pizzazz and attraction. Yes they have stores to shop in and restaurants to eat at, maybe even pictures with Santa during the holidays, but no true excitable newness. Perhaps it’s time for more. Let’s call upon the real estate moguls and the 1% that are stockpiling all the money. Yoo-hoo! The malls could use your help!
Don’t believe me? Here are 10 reasons why we should bring American malls back to life:
1. The Mall is a Third Place
Our society desperately needs to get off social media and experience real in-person human interaction. A third place offers that connection. A third place is an environment that is separate from the home and the workplace /school. Bars, restaurants, libraries, or parks are all third places where one can go and build community. The mall makes for a great third place because there are so many options for things to do and see all under one roof. Eat something, buy something, watch something. It’s a full day event!
2. Stimulates the Economy
You have to spend money to get money (duh!). So business people, let’s spend some money and invest. Making the mall more attractive will bring more people in and make them want to spend more money! And, if we’re going to try and make brick-and-mortar stores happen for retailers, we might as well give them a mall space to test and learn and utilize the new foot traffic.
3. The Youth Need Somewhere to Go
Nowadays there are so many rules and regulations and limitations on where the kids can and cannot go, who they should be with, how long they can be there. No freedom. No wonder they stay in the house on their devices! But in all seriousness, it’s time we create better community spaces and give the youth some age-appropriate destinations to express themselves and congregate. An arcade, a carousel, a food court, an ice skating rink, or even more age appropriate stores. Let’s not overthink this, please! The youth just might even spend their allowance or mommy & daddy’s money 😉
4. More Malls = More Dating
Speaking of rom-coms, have you seen any recently with a memorable mall scene? No? Didn’t think so. We’re losing recipes. The mall is common ground where first-dates and high-school dating can happen in the safe comforts of the public. Let’s be honest, modern dating sucks and has been resorted to *gulps* the APPS. Reviving the malls and sprucing them up a bit to today’s taste can help bring back traditional dating. This creates space for singles to casually meet other singles out and about in the wild, like old times.
More notable scenes that take place in a mall:
5. Malls could be Music Venues
The mall of all malls, Mall of America, has got it right. An amusement park, community events, and live music performances. Now most malls don’t have giant atriums like Mall of America to host musical talent, but they do have empty real estate left behind by retailers or department stores that are no more. Imagine… we rework these old department store spaces into reasonable-sized music venues for local & regional tours, up-and-coming talent, and pop-up performances. Now obviously everywhere can’t house a Soldier Field or Coachella type of performance, but a new type of music venue could be just what the community needs. What brings the people together more than live music?! After all, all great music names must start somewhere. Fifth Harmony and Zendaya both started their careers with mall performances!
6. Restaurant Innovation & Expansion
Core parts of the mall are the food court and restaurants, and usually always packed. Restaurants? It’s time to innovate. Let’s get some new ideas on the block, like a fast-casual build-your-own ramen, or a place entirely dedicated to making wraps. Better yet, let’s focus on the experience… the ambiance. What happened to a good theme? Transformative decor that makes you want to sit down and enjoy the ambiance regardless of how good the food actually is. Take a page out of the Rainforest Cafe strategic handbook! The opportunities are endless. More malls back in action also creates more places for current restaurants to expand. (Looking at you, Cava!)
7. People Prefer Trying on Clothes in-store
Hear me out. Online retailers & boutiques like ASOS, Prettylittlething, Fashionnova could have a smaller store-front dedicated to order online + try-on in store. Buying clothes online is a huge pain, mainly because if something doesn’t fit, you have to go through the hassle of returning it. If these retailers had stores to alleviate this issue, consumers just might be more likely to buy more and speak positively of the brand. Brick and mortar is expensive, I know, but there would be no need to fully stock the store with merchandise or displays. Try on and get out. Supply chain & logistics peoples, get to work on this!
8. A Survival Safe Haven
A bit more controversial, but if capitalism is going to capitalism, then the people are going to need an indoor facility to take refuge in. Not having to step outside to shop, eat, engage in community is a huge advantage. Too hot? Mall. Too cold? Mall. Air quality is bad? Mall. Zombie or Alien apocalypse? Mall. Need a bomb shelter? Mall, of course! Let’s start thinking big and thinking of malls as a means of survival. Randhurst Mall in Mount Prospect, Illinois had just this very concept, an underground bomb shelter to house all of its residents. Victor Gruen, oh the mind that you were! The urban planning movement of greenery & farms within the mall also plays into this element, transforming the mall into a utopia.
9. Meet-and-Greets
There’s no better feeling than meeting your fav celeb, Youtuber, or creator. Meet-and-greets carried the 2010s on their back. With social media careers taking off and so many popular content creators around the country, let’s bring back a tried and true element of connection. In-person meet-and-greets are an opportunity for “fans” to come out together and meet other “fans”, while also supporting said person that’s being met. Like VidCon, but expanded across the country in different malls.
10. Second-hand Shopping
We can’t revive the malls without acknowledging the recent increase in buying secondhand. For many reasons, consumers are interested in continuing the product lifecycle of already existing clothes, accessories, household items, furniture, and decor. Curated second-hand shops could line the mall just like the retailers and boutiques. The mall provides a physical place for the fashion, style, and trend lovers to decorate & design a smaller retail space before spreading their wings (and pockets) elsewhere to a larger and potentially more expensive space. Take your Depop shop one step further! Get into the mall!
But no seriously, can we make this happen?? If your family, friends, or network have mall real estate in their portfolio, pass it on. For the sake of the people ❤
THE IDENTITY CRISIS 