The Shopping Mall Stands Tall Even in Today’s Economy
Since the economic crash, hundreds of retail businesses have had to shutter their doors. While the economy is finally starting to get back on track it is not recovering as fast as most would hope. One area that is actually making a bit of a comeback faster than the average retailer is the local shopping mall. Gained the height of popularity in the mid 1970’s and exploded in the 1980’s as a place where people would congregate to shop and just to hang out. While the social aspects of the shopping mall played a larger part before the economic downturn, the revenue potential is what is driving their rebirth.
Most people think of a shopping mall as a place where you can go to see a national chain, but in smaller towns these mall areas are also housing the start-up businesses in a way that shields these businesses from some harsh realities. An entrepreneur needs to come up with quite a bit of capital when they purchase a stand-alone building for their business. Setting up shop in a mall means that there is already a space that has been set up for a retail business. While placement of a new business’ store front might be up to the landlord rather than the business owner, there is no worry about zoning or filling space the business is not set up for. There is also the added bonus of already having foot traffic, rather than the business needing to try and lure customers out to a remote or seedy location in town.
While the shopping mall is a great investment for businesses, there are plenty of positives for the consumer as well. Less overhead for the business when it comes to leasing a stand-alone business as well as employing their own security force and a host of other items can mean lower prices for the customers. There is also an added bonus of less time and effort spent shopping because of the massive number of stores that are all housed in the same place. Going to a shopping mall means that if you cannot find what you are looking for in one store, you do not have to drive across town to continue the search. The world’s best malls are worrying less about having competing companies and more about making sure the consumer is well represented.
The shopping mall is making its resurgence in American and across the world precisely because of these benefits. More businesses are looking to set up shop in ready-made areas and scores more shoppers are heading to these shopping districts with the intent of only doing their shopping in those areas. A shopping mall done right is a win for those on both sides of the coin. Going forward, malls could be the driving factor in speeding up an economy that is chugging along.
