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I've never heard of Dan Bell, but I just Googled him and found that he was born Feb 9,1977. No one that young has any clue about the America that was - the America that spawned the malls across its suburban landscape.
America is a sick country and this "dead mall" syndrome is one of the most visible and tangible signs of it's demise.
By no means are we watching a market based, consumer-choice based, evolution. COVID-19 was just the latest in a series of perfect storm events that inch-by-inch imploded the life quality we once took for granted. By "we" I mean those of us of an age who knew America before the malls and thus felt the powerful heartbeat of America surging upward by any and all measures.
We're 35 years past "the end of an era". But just as America didn't reach its peak in a day, neither will its denouement.
Dan Bell might not be an older person, but he certainly knows how to document things well in terms of a very large sample size in the declining indoor mall category. The fact of the matter is the US was way over-retailed compared to any other country in the world, and online shopping has gradually reduced the oversupply of bricks and mortar retail, which is why downward pressures on commercial real estate will continue for a very long period of time to come as they can't all be repurposed into residential real estate. I don't disagree that the purchasing power for Americans has declined for a long time due to cost of living increases of multiple categories, but that is not directly related to technology dramatically changing the typical consumer.
Correction: CBL Properties, owner of Oak Park Mall files for bankruptcy. It's still amongst the healthiest retail properties in the city. IC hasn't weathered COVID any better than Oak Park and Zona has been sitting under 60% occupancy for a long time. TCP has a lot of long term vacancies as well in addition to the worst Barnes & Noble store in the metro as one of its anchors.
Correction: CBL Properties, owner of Oak Park Mall files for bankruptcy. It's still amongst the healthiest retail properties in the city. IC hasn't weathered COVID any better than Oak Park and Zona has been sitting under 60% occupancy for a long time. TCP has a lot of long term vacancies as well in addition to the worst Barnes & Noble store in the metro as one of its anchors.
Thank you. That's an important distinction.
This company owns more than 100 properties in 26 states, so in no way is that a direct reflection or result of Oak Park's specific situation. And, given the fact that many malls have been closed by local government edict due to COVID, this is anything but a true measure of the viability of malls as a successful business model going forward. We are living a bizarre snapshot in time, the like of which has never occurred in our lifetimes and won't likely recur for at least another lifetime.
Scores of formerly popular and successful restaurants have been shut down for long enough now that many will never reopen. Gone for good. And the last thing that is is an indication that people are no longer interested in going out to eat.
No business decision being made today in this bizarre era should be considered as part of any trend.
Correction: CBL Properties, owner of Oak Park Mall files for bankruptcy. It's still amongst the healthiest retail properties in the city. IC hasn't weathered COVID any better than Oak Park and Zona has been sitting under 60% occupancy for a long time. TCP has a lot of long term vacancies as well in addition to the worst Barnes & Noble store in the metro as one of its anchors.
Correction: CBL Properties, owner of Oak Park Mall files for bankruptcy. It's still amongst the healthiest retail properties in the city. IC hasn't weathered COVID any better than Oak Park and Zona has been sitting under 60% occupancy for a long time. TCP has a lot of long term vacancies as well in addition to the worst Barnes & Noble store in the metro as one of its anchors.
This company owns more than 100 properties in 26 states, so in no way is that a direct reflection or result of Oak Park's specific situation. And, given the fact that many malls have been closed by local government edict due to COVID, this is anything but a true measure of the viability of malls as a successful business model going forward. We are living a bizarre snapshot in time, the like of which has never occurred in our lifetimes and won't likely recur for at least another lifetime.
Scores of formerly popular and successful restaurants have been shut down for long enough now that many will never reopen. Gone for good. And the last thing that is is an indication that people are no longer interested in going out to eat.
No business decision being made today in this bizarre era should be considered as part of any trend.
They do own most of the malls in St. Louis, though with the exception of The Galleria and Plaza Frontenac, the two "upscale" malls. CBL defaulted on Chesterfield a few years back, which has been a failing former upscale mall for over a decade now, and didn't pick up Northwest Plaza or Crestview Court when they bought up all of the Westfield Malls. Right now Mid Rivers looks to be close to getting dropped from the portfolio with South County not far behind. West County and St. Clair square are two of their top performing malls with Cool Springs Galleria in Nashville, Oak Park, and Hamilton Place in Chattanooga.
Malls in KC have always been a cluster. https://jocohistory.wordpress.com/20...-1992-to-1994/ I recomend reading all of the parts of this retrospective on the great mall to gain a more historic perspective. People who fought against the Great Mall correctly predicted its decline based off of the then mediocre performance of Metro North and Independence Center (pre Simon era), both of which had been constructed on the edge of suburbia and failed to generate much growth in the area. Metro North would ironically attract a large power center as it entered its final years as a mediocre mall (when you're a super regional mall whose best stores are Topsy's Popcorn, DEB, and The Gap in 2000, there's no hope), and Independence Center would finally find a footing after Simon took over leasing as the malls third owner in 20 years. Simon repositioned the mall and brought in a lot of the same stores that were exclusively at The Plaza, Oak Park, and Town Center Plaza like American Eagle, Abercrombie, etc. and put the nail in the coffin for Blue Ridge and siphoned away traffic from Bannister, whose best national stores were all bankrupt by 2000 judging by the directories of the era. Indian Springs, Metcalf South, and Antioch also failed to attract the newer popular national stores as stores like Kinney Shoes and County Seat went under.
I think it's a race to the bottom between Oak Park and Independence Center now with Town Center and Zona just existing. The Plaza will always survive in some capacity in all but a natural disaster. Town Center and IC both have retail slumlords for owners at the moment who appear to be doing the bare minimum. I expect TCP to eventually ask for incentives to reconfigure and renovate as I believe the main plaza hasn't received any taxpayer help since opening.
This was thrown out above, but Nothing has truly "left" the plaza to move to Leawood with Pottery Barn already having a secondary location in Leawood and Restoration Hardware returning to a larger space after an appart botched deal to take over the old Halls store. It does have the metros last GAP store and second to last Banana Republic after the closure of the Zona Rosa GAP and Oak Park BR. Both chains are fairly irrelevant these days.With Oak Park, CBL's financial issues have weighed down their malls for a few years now. Since last x-mas it has lost Lady Foot Locker, Swarovski, Microsoft (gone nationwide), Panera, the persian lamp store next to swarovski (I think they liquidated as they're gone in St. Louis and Des Moines too), The Walking Company (closed in Independence too), GNC, American Girl (closed with Atlanta and Denver), Abercrombie Kids (closed across the board, all locations consolidated with main store), the second Bath & Bodyworks, and gained The Shoe Department (former Payless Superstore), Charlotte Russe, and a renovated Zumiez. Tradehome Shoes had been on the coming soon list for the former Crazy 8 Store, but I think they're about finished as a company as they quietly closed a large number of stores during the pandemic including Topeka and West Des Moines. I would be surprised if Round One Entertainment shows up at Oak Park post Nordstrom. They just took over the cursed space at Towne East Square that in my lifetimes' memory has been Service Merchandise, Stein Mart, Steve & Barry's, a for profit college, and Glow Golf. My mother and aunts had shopped in the same space as a JM McDonald Department Store in the 70s.
Both Oak Park and IC are going to have to tackle vacant strip mall spaces around the mall eventually. The shops across 95th have been low occupancy for years, especially since Hy-Vee left and Stein Mart is liquidating across Quivira with a rumor that Nordstrom Rack is going to follow its mother store to The Plaza. IC has that basically 100% vacant plaza where Dick's and JCP were. I'm surprised that JCP never moved to the mall... The nicer, but smaller stores in Liberty and Lee's Summit stores must have really siphoned away its shopper base, and I'm sure Dick's bailing and Payless folding didn't help.
Then there's The Landing. It's not going anywhere until the current owner, who seems very fond of the little mall who couldn't, retires or sells it. Reportedly the worst performing Macy's in KC upon the sale of the division to Dillard's, it keeps kicking without a true anchor.
They do own most of the malls in St. Louis, though with the exception of The Galleria and Plaza Frontenac, the two "upscale" malls. CBL defaulted on Chesterfield a few years back, which has been a failing former upscale mall for over a decade now, and didn't pick up Northwest Plaza or Crestview Court when they bought up all of the Westfield Malls. Right now Mid Rivers looks to be close to getting dropped from the portfolio with South County not far behind. West County and St. Clair square are two of their top performing malls with Cool Springs Galleria in Nashville, Oak Park, and Hamilton Place in Chattanooga.
Malls in KC have always been a cluster. https://jocohistory.wordpress.com/20...-1992-to-1994/ I recomend reading all of the parts of this retrospective on the great mall to gain a more historic perspective. People who fought against the Great Mall correctly predicted its decline based off of the then mediocre performance of Metro North and Independence Center (pre Simon era), both of which had been constructed on the edge of suburbia and failed to generate much growth in the area. Metro North would ironically attract a large power center as it entered its final years as a mediocre mall (when you're a super regional mall whose best stores are Topsy's Popcorn, DEB, and The Gap in 2000, there's no hope), and Independence Center would finally find a footing after Simon took over leasing as the malls third owner in 20 years. Simon repositioned the mall and brought in a lot of the same stores that were exclusively at The Plaza, Oak Park, and Town Center Plaza like American Eagle, Abercrombie, etc. and put the nail in the coffin for Blue Ridge and siphoned away traffic from Bannister, whose best national stores were all bankrupt by 2000 judging by the directories of the era. Indian Springs, Metcalf South, and Antioch also failed to attract the newer popular national stores as stores like Kinney Shoes and County Seat went under.
I think it's a race to the bottom between Oak Park and Independence Center now with Town Center and Zona just existing. The Plaza will always survive in some capacity in all but a natural disaster. Town Center and IC both have retail slumlords for owners at the moment who appear to be doing the bare minimum. I expect TCP to eventually ask for incentives to reconfigure and renovate as I believe the main plaza hasn't received any taxpayer help since opening.
This was thrown out above, but Nothing has truly "left" the plaza to move to Leawood with Pottery Barn already having a secondary location in Leawood and Restoration Hardware returning to a larger space after an appart botched deal to take over the old Halls store. It does have the metros last GAP store and second to last Banana Republic after the closure of the Zona Rosa GAP and Oak Park BR. Both chains are fairly irrelevant these days.With Oak Park, CBL's financial issues have weighed down their malls for a few years now. Since last x-mas it has lost Lady Foot Locker, Swarovski, Microsoft (gone nationwide), Panera, the persian lamp store next to swarovski (I think they liquidated as they're gone in St. Louis and Des Moines too), The Walking Company (closed in Independence too), GNC, American Girl (closed with Atlanta and Denver), Abercrombie Kids (closed across the board, all locations consolidated with main store), the second Bath & Bodyworks, and gained The Shoe Department (former Payless Superstore), Charlotte Russe, and a renovated Zumiez. Tradehome Shoes had been on the coming soon list for the former Crazy 8 Store, but I think they're about finished as a company as they quietly closed a large number of stores during the pandemic including Topeka and West Des Moines. I would be surprised if Round One Entertainment shows up at Oak Park post Nordstrom. They just took over the cursed space at Towne East Square that in my lifetimes' memory has been Service Merchandise, Stein Mart, Steve & Barry's, a for profit college, and Glow Golf. My mother and aunts had shopped in the same space as a JM McDonald Department Store in the 70s.
Both Oak Park and IC are going to have to tackle vacant strip mall spaces around the mall eventually. The shops across 95th have been low occupancy for years, especially since Hy-Vee left and Stein Mart is liquidating across Quivira with a rumor that Nordstrom Rack is going to follow its mother store to The Plaza. IC has that basically 100% vacant plaza where Dick's and JCP were. I'm surprised that JCP never moved to the mall... The nicer, but smaller stores in Liberty and Lee's Summit stores must have really siphoned away its shopper base, and I'm sure Dick's bailing and Payless folding didn't help.
Then there's The Landing. It's not going anywhere until the current owner, who seems very fond of the little mall who couldn't, retires or sells it. Reportedly the worst performing Macy's in KC upon the sale of the division to Dillard's, it keeps kicking without a true anchor.
Sounds like you're in the business....that's an interesting in-depth perspective.
I went to work for Dillard's in Oak Park in the mid-80s and your last paragraph reminded me of when they sent me to The Landing to help out for a week or two in '86 or '87. If memory serves, they were closing that store then. It was great to get back home to Oak Park.
So is the Nordstrom already closed at Oak Park or is that awaiting the Plaza opening? When I worked there, that Nordstrom space was all parking.
Then there's The Landing. It's not going anywhere until the current owner, who seems very fond of the little mall who couldn't, retires or sells it. Reportedly the worst performing Macy's in KC upon the sale of the division to Dillard's, it keeps kicking without a true anchor.
My folks used to shop there a lot when I was growing up.
Eddie Jacobson, Harry S Truman's business partner in that "failed haberdashery" downtown, had a men's wear shop on the 63d Street-facing side where my Dad bought all his clothes. Mom bought a lot of hers from the Adler's location there and split her Chasnoff runs between this store and their Plaza location. ISTR that The Palace, a clothing emporium whose main store was at 12th and Grand, also had a Landing location.
When I protested to Barbara Barickman at the J.C. Nichols Co. about the disappearance of my favorite Country Club Plaza haunts, her reply was, "There's still The Landing."
Is that former Macy's still a Dillard's? My recollection was that at least its lower level was something else altogether the last time I set foot inside The Landing in 2018.
Malls exploded onto the scene 50 years ago because they make so much sense and are so comfortable and convenient. And they used to be among the safest environments. They could be again.
The death of many malls has more to do with America's dying middle class than anything else.
Online shopping is a fad that is probably near peak and will not continue to boom as it has well into the future. I do almost none myself because there is simply no reason to except for hard-to-find specialty items.
Lol now Amazon gets larger and larger and the pandemic only made this happen more while malls really struggle.. Your take was 100% wrong.. You are like the person in 1996 who says the Internet is a "fad"
So is the Nordstrom already closed at Oak Park or is that awaiting the Plaza opening? When I worked there, that Nordstrom space was all parking.
Nordstrom is still open at Oak Park. Don't know if they'll remain until their lease runs out or extend it maybe until plaza. Lots of retail unknowns right about now that's for sure.
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