Last week, we looked at how property owners are trying to combat the decline of shopping malls by appealing to non-retail tenants like gyms and fitness centers. This video provides more background on this downward spiral, showing footage of American malls thriving in their heyday as well as the decaying, abandoned structures that some have become. But the video isn’t entirely doom and gloom: it also gives a lot of screentime to an Atlanta-area shopping center called Plaza Fiesta that could provide the model for malls of the future.
Questions:
- Why did shopping malls start to decline? How can mall owners win customers back?
- Do you think shopping centers like Plaza Fiesta could be the future of malls? Why or why not?