2024, Business, Mysteries, Uncategorized

Mall Malaise

35 Comments

I worked at the B.Dalton in Southdale almost forty years ago.  It was B.Dalton #1 – the first store in the chain, which eventually got swallowed up by Barnes & Noble.  So I knew Southdale like the back of my hand.  Southdale and Burnsdale  Center were the only two malls where I ever worked.  And not being a massive shopping fan, I never got to know any other commercial centers as well as those two.

Yesterday I needed to kill about 45 minutes so I thought I’d walk around Southdale for a bit.  WOW.  I was there around noon and was a little taken aback by how quiet it was.  And how many storefronts were covered up with photos and notices like the one in the photo about changes coming in the future.  Several stores that weren’t shuttered didn’t appear to be open and the stores that were open were almost all empty of customers.  The only lively spots were The Apple Store and the Hennepin County Government Services.  I didn’t even know that the HC Services had moved to Southdale when they closed their space next to the Southdale Library!

My guess is that big malls like Southdale may not survive.  I can’t imagine what they think they’re going to do liven it up. Even Santa’s workshop/photo op is abysmally small (and not open at noon) up on the second floor! Between the pandemic and the rise of free shipping and the seemingly growing sense that we’ve over-materialized ourselves, maybe big huge commercial centers are dying a quiet death.  I’d probably need more research to really answer this question but unfortunately it’s not research I would relish.  Just have to wait and see.

When was the last time you were in a mall?  Do you have a go-to shopping spot?

35 thoughts on “Mall Malaise”

  1. Last mall was the Mall of America. Robin and I were out there looking for small Minnesota-themed gifts we could take with us to Japan. I also stopped at the Apple store to get an attachment that would let me download photos from a camera card to my iPad. MOA doesn’t appear to be in any particular distress though there are always a certain number of store spaces boarded up or in some sort of transition.

    A few weeks before that, I had occasion to go to the Southdale Apple store. I had an appointment to talk to one of the “geniuses” about a problem I had with my iMac since updating the operating system. (Turned out to be a problem a lot of people had, an incompatibility between the new OS and some security software). I had to drive around the mall looking for a door that was open and not part of some construction project. It was a door diagonally across from Apple, so I had to walk through a lot of the mall. It was pretty dismal.

    When I was in high school, one of my first jobs was in the display department of JC Penney at Brookdale. They were still building out the mall at the time. When we lived in that part of town, Brookdale was our go-to mall but it got progressively seedier and more irrelevant and now it’s entirely gone.

    I occasionally go out to Rosedale Mall if there’s a specific item of clothing I’m going to have to try on or if I want to see in advance the quality of the product. I regret to admit it but these days we are fairly reliant on Amazon. The alternative is to have to drive all over looking for what you have in mind, since most brick and mortar stores keep their inventory so lean.

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  2. We were at Rosedale about a month ago for me to buy work clothes at JC Penny. Rosedale is doing considerably better than Southdale–I heard once that it’s the metro area’s busiest mall–but then, it doesn’t have so much competition in the area. I imagine Southdale is suffering because the MoA is so close.

    Come to think of it, we were at the Southdale branch library for their big book sale before they closed, whenever that was. We crossed the street to the Galleria for lunch at Good Earth and a look around Williams Sonoma and B&N, but didn’t go into Southdale at all. It’s sad to go to SD, remembering what it used to be like, and see how abandoned it looks now.

    I am one of those people who are particular about how her clothes fit and how her shoes feel, so I seldom buy anything but t-shirts and Birkie sandals online. I do hear Bill about the lack of choices in brick-n-mortar stores; it’s also annoying how so many of them carry the same stuff and it’s hard to find alternatives, like those terrible years when all the women’s jeans were low-rise and I finally had to buy men’s jeans to get any that were comfortable. Guys, I am envious of your deep and numerous pockets…

    –Crow Girl

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  4. I worked at Donaldson’s dept. store in 1973-74 and remember it as being “the” place to shop in the SW metro (Eden Prairie Mall wasn’t even a glimmer in a developer’s eye. And I don’t think Burnsville Mall was built until the ’80s or later.

    All the store fronts were occupied and traffic was always steady on weekdays. I also endured one of the first Black Friday rushes. Couldn’t believe my eyes when the janitor opened the mall entrance door and probably 100 people were standing outside waiting to get in. They flooded in like a tsunami. I just chuckled to myself thinking, “They get this excited about getting 25% off on a leisure suit or PVC jacket (a fake leather look–ugh!)??

    A few months ago I stopped by B-ville Center and it was a ghost town on a weekday afternoon. Lots of stores were only open three or four days over the weekends. It was creepily empty. Maybe 20 people in there, most walking to somewhere else. Even the big dept. store there (Macy’s?) was nearly empty. Gave me the willies.

    Then two weeks ago I was scoping out the River Hills Mall in Mankato on a Saturday for a possible author vendor gig in the future. It was pleasantly busy but a significant number of store fronts were empty.

    I got out of the mall habit decades ago and have never regretted it. I only go when necessary. Never cared for watching all the shoppers wandering around like lost sheep looking for some food. Sad that that particular ritual substituted for a social community for some many decades. I’m glad malls are on the decline, but I wish some other social-community bonding activity would rise up to take its place–one that actually builds and nurtures community on a personal basis.

    Chris in Owatonna

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    1. We have outdoor gathering area in our downtown that has been a real success. They tore down a bank building and put in an outdoor concert venue where mobile food trucks can come. In thevwarmer weather hundreds of people come for live music and food on Tuesday evenings.

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      1. I sell books at a lot of outdoor street markets/fairs/arts & craft shows and I agree they do a good job of bringing people together to socialize. We have a monthly summer street fair in Owatonna that has really taken off in the past few years. Thousands of people come to downtown and I a LOT of small groups of people standing around chatting. Very encouraging.

        We also have weekly concerts in the band shell that always draw good crowds during the warmer months. And a very strong Saturday farmers’ market that is always packed with vendors and shoppers (on good weather days at least).

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  5. I almost never go to malls anymore. There is a small one in Faribault. There used to a a JC Penney’s there, but it closed several years ago. It was a “corner” store – not sure of the proper word for the biggest stores that get the corner spots in malls. Anyway, that store now has discount furniture (or had – I haven’t been there for a while.) One of the other stores became an eclectic thrift and craft store. It has a lot of booths for crafters to sell their stuff. I like that idea. There is a VisionWorks in that mall, and more recently a used bookstore.

    I needed a new Apple Watch last summer and tried the MOA first. I’m very uncomfortable there. I thought it was crowded, and all the people looked unfriendly. I was shocked at the swarm of people in the Apple Store. I looked in, but decided not to wait for a sales geek, so I went to Southdale. I parked near the police station, and went in that entrance. I took myself for a walk around the mall, and saw the same things you did. The Apple Store was much less crowded than the one at MOA though, so I found a geek and chose a watch. Then I got out of there.

    In my humble opinion, we’ve used so many resources and built so many places like this, and they’re becoming dinosaurs before our eyes. We need places for people – like schools, daycare, or YMCAs. Or music or theater venues. Affordable places for people to go and be together. I’m bothered by all the waste we’ve created. Infrastructure like roads, parking lots, and huge buildings that just sit there with so much wasted space. Surely we can find a use for these spaces we’ve built, with creative thinking. It reflects badly on society.

    The malls in Mankato and in Duluth seem to be doing okay.

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  6. Yep, another pendulum swing, went as far as it could in one direction, and now…

    When we left Winona in 1985, there was a K-Mart, the Winona Mall, a JC Penneys, Shopko… all either central or west end. Last time I was at the Mall was for a thrift store there…

    By 2018 all that’s left are a couple of shops still at the Mall – the K-Mart morphed into a Gunderson satellite clinic (main hospital out of LaCrosse). Shopko got bought up by U-haul. Recent newspaper headline: “Winona Mall to be transformed into education facility for students with special needs.”

    However, the far east end is now franchise city – Walgreens, Walmart, Target, Menards, Fleet Farm, MGM Liquors. I mostly go to Walgreens, Target, and Menards. Oddly enough, our downtown is still alive and kicking, but that’s another story.

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  7. We have a mall that seems to be doing marginally well. We vote there, in the old Hallmark store. The most thriving business is The Backyard Play Cafe, where parents can bring their young children and eat while the children play on rather wonderful indoor equipment. The mall also has our largest grocery store. It used to have Penney’s and Herbergers. Now their are small clothing boutiques and western wear shops.

    Today it is very windy with gusts up to 56 mph and light snow. The windchill is -2. Shopping indoors is the only way to go. Better yet, just stay home. Husband is in Bismarck and will spend another night there due to bad roads and poor visibility.

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  8. i saw a colleague post on face book a memorable quote
    everything i own comes from costco.
    i had to smile then i realized its getting truer by the moment. its kind of like the garrison quote “if we don’t have it you probably don’t need it

    i have a lifetime supply of clothes from my ebay involvement and may never need to shop clothing again.
    my go to for clothing was a particular goodwill store where well to do folks get rid of things like you all get rid of cookbooks. its the only logical explaination as to why perfect shirts pants suits and cookware are offered fo me. i got started garage sailing years ago when i realized i could buy garage sale shorts cheaper than i was paying to have my shirts cleaned and pressed. i amassed 100 dress shirts in no time winter jackets lps and electronics and too reasonable to pass up

    i feel sad when i go to southdale but i finf it hard to believe i ever thought it was ok to pay department store prices for anything. department stores are doomed for the masses. maybe nordstroms and macys for well to do but costco seems to be it for just plain folks
    specialty stores for fly fishermen and woodworkers seem to have a place but my guess is that the you tube video that instructs you how to do whatever will soon include the links to exactly what you need with a simple click
    i used to get lost in hallmark card stores and b daltons. i always had my rendezvous in the mall at b dalton so when the oerson i was meeting was 20 minutes late i didnt mind a bit
    no more but now i have my phone to occupy every free second of my day
    i had a friend of my sons dad comment that hecwas very concerned that there was no time for daydreaming any more
    the world is changing and not all for the better. i used to really enjoy christmas shopping at all my secret spots
    amazon wiped them out.

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  10. RIse and Shine, Baboons,

    Last year the Hennepin Co Master Gardeners held the Houseplant Sale a Southdale after a cancellation at the former venue at the last minute (really not a good thing). We held the sale a the former Victoria’s Secret store. It became evident those days we were there that there was not much going on at SD. We were the big draw. But on breaks, walking through SD it was very empty. My understanding is that it is in better shape now, despite what you saw the other day, VS. They have brought in a Lifetime Fitness, a Kowalskis and HC Service center. Apparently they are “re-conceiving”the uses of Southdale.

    I soon will cancel my Amazon membership after Bezos move with the Washington Post. Like Barb, I have been trying to transfer my purchasing to different websites which are NOT Amazon. Otherwise Costco is often a source of stuff, as well as Aldi, Cub Foods and some gift stores. I recently found an app that helps you purchase from stores that support your beliefs. (Goods Unite Us). That will help me make some different choices about who I purchase from.

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    1. Yes, I was going to mention that there’s a huge gym and also a huge grocery store at Southdale now. I didn’t go into either one yesterday, but it seems kind of funny since I’m not used to it yet.

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  11. I had my fill of malls by years of flooring work at Lane Bryant, The Limited and Fashion Bug stores across the country. The after-store-hours were brutal. The managers were typically easy to accommodate but mall security was typically horrid. Power mad!!!

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      1. I turned up the heat in more rooms at home last night, and today at the college I can tell my shop heat has been turned on.
        The home shop: I got the last door installed this morning, and I added some insulation, and I’m figuring out how to temporarily wire up the thermostat. Almost there!

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  13. I remember going to Rosedale around 1970 or so. I was sort of entranced with it. Before that, the JC Penney in Sunray shopping center was the most upscale store of which I’d seen the inside.

    Rosedale, at the time, had a Dayton’s at one end and a Donaldson’s at the other, and a large open atrium with escalators near the anchor stores. Smaller shops lined the outer walls.

    I remember loving the store Sox Appeal, both because I thought the name was terribly clever, and because they had a dazzling array of socks in different colors and patterns. I liked argyles in those days. I think it’s also the first store where I ever saw Christmas socks, and the idea that you could have socks you only wore at Christmastime was very novel.

    The last time I was at the megamall, there was still a Sox Appeal store, and I hope it’s still there. I drop in and buy a couple of pairs now and then, hoping they can remain open. So many of the other stores that were around in my youth are long defunct.

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