Shopping Malls Close: What Will Open in their Place?
May/22/2009 08:32 AM Filed in: Shopping | Humor | Satire | Economy | Recession | Life of a Rock Star | Nicole Hanratty
As shopping malls across the country feel the economic crunch in sales, and shops close down like dominoes falling one after another, malls are becoming hollow empty shells of a past culture that is coming to an end. [See WSJ Recession Turns Malls Into Ghost Towns, Friday, May 22, 2009] Dinosaurs of their times, these oversized massive structures no longer fit the needs or desires of today’s youth or consumers that once drove their success.
Like it or not, the era of excess is over as even the wealthiest cut back and second guess expenditures, and we are all about to face a reality check like never before.
Reality Check No. 1:
We may have to actually drive more than a few miles to get to a shopping mall or store. Public transport may become desirable. Community may resurface. Neighbors may once again need to share home grown produce and cups of sugar...maybe even learn each other’s names.
Reality Check No. 2:
Families may need to interact with one another instead of packing up the SUV and heading off to the mall. Front porches and rocking chairs may fill up. Jump ropes may be swung. Moms with strollers might be seen on sidewalks and in parks instead of roaming inside shopping areas.
Reality Check No. 3:
Fewer malls may bring back smaller one-of-a-kind specialty shops with mom and pop businesses. Individuals may begin to have a unique appearance rather than a mass-marketed chain store look. Teens in California may look quite different then their counterparts in Nebraska. Items for sale may begin to vary from county to county.
Reality Check No. 4:
Increased online shopping may change girlfriend time. Shopping may no longer be associated with friendship. Friends may begin engaging in other activities to spend time together. Look for the re-emergence of sewing circles.
Reality Check No. 5:
Teens may get back to basics when looking for places to hang out with friends. Drive-in movie theaters may start re-opening. Strawberry fields may become filled with more than just sweet fruit.
Reality Check No. 6:
Unlimited empty square footage means unlimited possibilities. Brainstorming may become contagious. Space usage may become creative. Malls may be replaced by hands-on business training centers, homeless shelters, affordable housing, cultural mecca-centers, public works centers, volunteer stations, green scenes, museums, technology hubs, science enrichment centers, job training sites, vegetable gardens, fruit-tree groves, recycle centers, or much needed new campus sites for warn down public schools. Frankly my friends, the reality is, the possibilities are endless.
Au revoir for now...n
Like it or not, the era of excess is over as even the wealthiest cut back and second guess expenditures, and we are all about to face a reality check like never before.
Reality Check No. 1:
We may have to actually drive more than a few miles to get to a shopping mall or store. Public transport may become desirable. Community may resurface. Neighbors may once again need to share home grown produce and cups of sugar...maybe even learn each other’s names.
Reality Check No. 2:
Families may need to interact with one another instead of packing up the SUV and heading off to the mall. Front porches and rocking chairs may fill up. Jump ropes may be swung. Moms with strollers might be seen on sidewalks and in parks instead of roaming inside shopping areas.
Reality Check No. 3:
Fewer malls may bring back smaller one-of-a-kind specialty shops with mom and pop businesses. Individuals may begin to have a unique appearance rather than a mass-marketed chain store look. Teens in California may look quite different then their counterparts in Nebraska. Items for sale may begin to vary from county to county.
Reality Check No. 4:
Increased online shopping may change girlfriend time. Shopping may no longer be associated with friendship. Friends may begin engaging in other activities to spend time together. Look for the re-emergence of sewing circles.
Reality Check No. 5:
Teens may get back to basics when looking for places to hang out with friends. Drive-in movie theaters may start re-opening. Strawberry fields may become filled with more than just sweet fruit.
Reality Check No. 6:
Unlimited empty square footage means unlimited possibilities. Brainstorming may become contagious. Space usage may become creative. Malls may be replaced by hands-on business training centers, homeless shelters, affordable housing, cultural mecca-centers, public works centers, volunteer stations, green scenes, museums, technology hubs, science enrichment centers, job training sites, vegetable gardens, fruit-tree groves, recycle centers, or much needed new campus sites for warn down public schools. Frankly my friends, the reality is, the possibilities are endless.
Au revoir for now...n
