Anyone been to a Sears closing? (and mall pondering)

[Lilburner]

The one near me (Gwinnett Place) is closing. Haven't really heard much about it.

Curious if they tend to have good deals.

Gwinnett Place is such an enigma. The area is a bustling, congested treasure trove of commerce, but the mall proper is all but dead. Bulldozing it is literally on the table.

Is this indoor malls in general? I wonder if people just prefer standalone businesses any more. The only mall I've been to in probably 10 years is the Bass Pro, with a couple quick forays into Sears auto service entrances.

[elandil]

IMHO, malls tend to be going the way of the Dodo.

Formerly a place to be a 1 stop shopping experience with a chance for socializing, both roles are now being fulfilled by online services. Teens no longer need it to hang out and catch up with friends, especially since Starbucks fills the roles and offers Free Wi-fi. And the normal stores that filled the malls are now finding that they can work cheaper online without having the inventory, rents, etc. associated with a brick n mortar location. Plus less loss from theft if customers can't actually touch the merchandise. Unfortunatley, the people who have to touch and actually see something before purchase are slowly being won over to online purchasing by both YT reviews where they can see the item in action with real people and the convenience of returns that online companies are offering.

 

[BennyMG1]

I agree. I have always been one of those who likes to physically see what I’m buying. However, I find myself slowly moving to mostly online shopping.

[aces]

In addition to malls dying in general, Gwinnett Place Mall's parking lot is pretty dangerous.
I don't want be "caught dead" there.

[Lilburner]

Kinda bad timing for Gwinnett place. Looks like a MARTA vote is coming, and looks like it might pass.

It would be the perfect place for a train station with a big multi-use development. But it would be a decade getting rail out there, and Gwinnett Place won't last that long.

What's up with the parking lot? I pride myself on being situationally aware in the moment, but as an armed giant, I don't put a lot of effort into recon research of public spaces.

[Asia_Off_Grid]

Teens no longer need it to hang out and catch up with friends, especially since Starbucks fills the roles and offers Free Wi-fi.

I don't know why they even go there. When they get together as a group, they don't say a word to each other. Their main source of communication is via short-cut English, via online messaging. The next generation of children are going to be nothing but morons, if this keeps up. The current "new" generation is already half way there.

[Starlady]

I wonder if some of the malls didn't cause their own demise by banning or limiting teen groups without adult supervision.  I know they had to do something since the kids were disrupting other shoppers (and I'm sure the kids weren't buying much) but the die off seems to have started about the same time.

[elandil]

Teens no longer need it to hang out and catch up with friends, especially since Starbucks fills the roles and offers Free Wi-fi.

I don't know why they even go there.

Free Wi-fi to run their machines and for the expensive coffee drinks that they think makes them look cool.... Similar to the way Cruising and being seen at the local hangout in a car was for the older generation.

When they get together as a group, they don't say a word to each other. Their main source of communication is via short-cut English, via online messaging. The next generation of children are going to be nothing but morons, if this keeps up. The current "new" generation is already half way there.

I say give them time and they may be back to using morse code....lol...

[ChristianJ]

I'd like to see these dying malls be retconed into megachurches and/or college campuses. Put something useful there instead of bulldozing it. And if they're gonna bulldoze, put a public park.

[Country Singer]

Cities and developers should look to 100 Oaks Mall in Nashville for a good business case: going to "mixed use".  In the case of 100 Oaks what brought it back to life was the traffic from people going to see their doctor or to have tests run:

"The mall was Nashville's second enclosed shopping area, originally opening in 1968, after Harding Mall opened the year before.Original tenants included JCPenney, Woolco, and Harveys. It closed in 1983, although Burlington Coat Factory opened in the former Woolco in 1985. The mall fully reopened in 1989 but began declining again soon afterward. Belz Enterprises re-developed the center in 1995 as an outlet mall, introducing big box stores such as Michael's, Media Play, and TJMaxx. Following an extensive renovation in 2008, the bottom floor of the mall remains open for retail, with major tenants including Kirkland's, Electronic Express, and PetSmart. The upper floor and office building are now used for medical clinics and administrative offices operated by Vanderbilt University Medical Center."