In a society where money, fame and fortune are looked highly upon, shopping is
an activity that enables those who want to keep up with the status quo. The
more modern strip malls, developed in the 1920’s, and Soon after, as suburbia
started to rise, shopping malls were mainstreaming. “In North America, the term
shopping mall is usually applied to enclosed retail structures (and is
generally abbreviated to simply mall), while shopping center usually
refers to open-air retail complexes; both types of facilities usually have
large parking lots, face major traffic arterials and have few pedestrian
connections to surrounding neighborhoods.” There are three types of shopping
centers that are popular in North America: the regional mall, super regional
malls, as well as outlet malls.
To be classified as a regional mall, there are a few components that need to be
in accordance. Regional malls have to have about 15 miles of stores. There is
also a greater selection of stores, nicer stores, but there may be a few less
expensive stores. Comparative to stores on the “Eastside”, the regional
mall would be Alderwood Mall. In Orange County, it would be Mission Viejo Mall.
They are a decent selection of stores, but they don’t necessarily have all of
the nicer stores. This mall has Nordstrom’s, which is top of the line, but also
has Love Culture, which is more of an inexpensive clothing store. These malls
are good for everyday shopping, they have all of the stores that you need, but
also the play stores that most people only browse through. They do have fancy
stores, but they also have massage chairs that you can pay someone for while
you're waiting.
The super regional malls have a nicer selection of shops and are the main mall
for the area they are around. The super regionals are typically 800,000
sq ft of area that can be occupied. There are also three or more
anchor stores. These stores are ones such as Nordstrom’s, Macy’s, and
Victoria's Secret; and in certain cases of high-end jewelry, Tiffany’s.
These malls are more of a fashionable type, for example, Bellevue Square.
Bellevue Square has the nicer stores, but it also has some stores like Claire's
and the Sanrio stores. These malls are in nicer areas, usually, and
in Southern California this mall would be the South Coast Mall. It has
all of the nicer stores, is huge, and is very fancy. Many people love to shop
in these malls because they are for the upper class.
An outlet mall is fun for
everyone. Most outlet mall shopping is less expensive than shopping in an
indoor mall, but also has some nice stores. "An outlet mall (or outlet
centre) is a type of shopping mall in which manufacturers sell their products
directly to the public through their own stores. Other stores in outlet malls
are operated by retailers selling returned goods and discontinued products, often
at heavily reduced prices", says Wikipedia. They are composed of a food
court, department stores, as well as stand-alone stores! These types of malls
are ideal for a summer day that you have a whole day to spend shopping. The
Tulalip outlets have Burberry and Juicy Couture stores, but they also have a
Dickie's store and a J. Crew store. They have an Adidas outlet, and a Michael
Kors outlet. These "outlet stores" have all discounted prices from
their retail stores, and most of the time there are sales in addition to this.
Then, there is a Pac Sun that is a normal priced store, as well as a Sony store
that is full priced. In California, the Cabazon outlets in Carlsbad has a David
Yurman outlet! Some of the stores are very rare to find as outlets, and some are
specific to outlet malls.
All-in-all, malls are great no
matter what shape or size. They have the convenience of nice shopping, as well
as the prices for everyday shopping. Shopping is something fun to do; and with
prices like the outlet malls, shops like the regional malls, and windown
shopping in the super regional malls, you are set for life!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shopping_mall
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