I hate the fact that malls are dying

I'm probably in the minority here but I hate seeing malls dying these days. I grew up going to them I have found memories of going to the arcades there and other stores. I'm not a fan of shopping ironically it's more of the atmosphere that malls give that I like more then anything else. I find them peaceful as long as they're not busy which is never these days unless you count Christmas time. Shopping for clothes is never fun but I don't understand how some people prefer shopping for them online and not knowing if they will fit it's just seems easier to try them on at a store. Anyways it's pretty depressing walking in the malls these days and seeing all the dead stores. Most of the malls I live near will be gone in a decade and turned into some lame living center place. I guess I'm a mall rat and I never even knew it lol what about you do you like going to the mall and have any fond memories? or are you glad they are dying and just want to shop online?

I went to the malls quite a bit in the 80's and 90's. I am not going to miss overpriced software, video games, and $2.50 for a single slice of cheese pizza.

Never really went to the mall to hang out unless I was going to the arcade (Aladdin). Even then, as soon as my tokens were gone so was I.

Too many people moving around aimlessly. I'm a point A-to-B kinda guy.

I've never enjoyed them. Too many people cramed into a small space, with no regard for others around them. I worked as a security guard at a mall for almost 3 years. They fucking suck for businesses (often overcharged for rent and services so small businesses can't thrive and end up replaced with chains).

Aladdin's Castle!! I played so much Mortal Kombat 2 and 3 there so many good memories.

That face when you put your $20 bill in the token machine instead of the $5.

Malls in my area (US Mid-Atlantic/South-Eastern) were not destination spots for bargains. Businesses like Target and especially Walmart reduced mall boutique store sales because the mall stores could not hope to price match and make a profit thus beginning to decline. I don't think people started shopping online mass until around 2002 here, malls were still thriving then. What really killed malls here was the recession of 2007/2008. Higher gas prices during those years did not help either, gas was nearly $4 a gallon where I am during those years so no wonder people didn't want to go shopping at the malls.

And finally, the fundamental reason malls are dying is because fewer customers are walking into malls such as myself. People are spending less time in malls and more time on lifestyle experiences, since shopping needs are now taken care of with a click of a button such as Amazon, families are looking for activities and more time to spend together instead of spending Saturday grocery shopping or at the malls. Going to smaller stores like Target & Walmart makes sense, because everything is their and cheaper then malls. And of course, shopping online such as Amazon has never been better. We just have to get out our phones and search for what we want and we'll see the review for merchandise. I shop on Amazon cause it's easy to do, if I want to buy clothes, I go to Target or Walmart for Clothes and they have fitting rooms anyways.

I grew up with shopping malls but at the same time, I'm not gonna miss them in a few decades.

Ah, I still remember the street fighter arcade machine where you actually had to punch the buttons. Walking around the arcade looking for pennies so I could trade in for a quarter...haha.

Other than that, malls suck and I couldn't care less about them. It's been at least 15 years since I've been in one.

Sounds like Costco.

Yeah, I don't like the fact that mall are dying. But I don't like it for selfish reasons, like I don't go to mall that much anymore, I don't buy stuff, I don't help support it yet I would like for it to exist for me, extant forever, so whenever I do wish to go to the mall it is there waiting for me. But then again, that's how I feel about a lot of things.

It's not dying where I am. For one thing, malls are a cheap way to cool off when it's +110F outside. Plus, there are only two real malls: one at the north side of the city, the other to the south.

One thing I forgot to mention. Malls nowadays are just for Teenagers to shop cause it's the place for cool kids to hang and get together. You'll see more Teenagers then grown-ups depending on where you live, so malls will still be around until all the teens are fully grown up of course.

As kids, we used to go fish quarters out of the fountains in the mall. As many as we wanted. No one said anything.

Edit: Oh and once as a teen I was 10 cents short on money for a gaming magazine, so I told the clerk to hold on, walked out the store and picked a dime out of the fountain, wiped it off and gave it to him.

@br0kenrabbit: Damn street rats haha. Unfortunately there was no fountain at my mall. But the memories man. Good times

My brother and I and two strangers beat TMNT Arcade at Alladins. Biggest crowd we ever drew.

Did you ever by chance play a game called T-Mek? That game took all the money to play but damn was it something else.

@br0kenrabbit: I have crap memory, I just remember playing street fighter, mortal kombat, off road, and the four player xmen game

This is something I've talked about a couple of times over the past few years. I have kept saying how I'll miss the malls when most of them are gone, and how it's hard to find places to meet people anymore.

I still don't really want to see malls go under, but I would like it if there were more places where I could meet new people. I'm not so sure that malls are the right environment for meeting people anyway. And I usually cringe a bit whenever I go to the mall anymore anyway because everything is so much more expensive there. I usually feel bad because I don't buy anything, maybe a soda at the $5 Below lol.

I remember there was this one night a few years ago where a friend and I were aimlessly checking out stores we liked there, and a girl and her friends started talking to us and we ended up playing some arcade games together. That was kind of cool. I regret not staying in touch with them, because that could have been a good way to make some friends. The only other person I really communicated with at the mall since was high on drugs, and I took pity on her because it seemed like her life was falling apart because she was such an awful person lol.

Can't say I'll be upset if/when they go. I used to live near the Mall of America. Wonder what they would do with it if it closed down. It's a massive structure.

One mall in my suburbs is open-air. But I don't like it there. It has a lot of expensive stores and it reminds me of Abercombie & Fitch previous CEO Mike Jefferies. Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew. Ewwww.

A milkshake/smoothie there costs $10

Prefer Amazon. Really hate being in a tight space with hoards of people.

One click, everything sorted. It's a great age we live in.

Not a fan of malls. Too many people, a really weird florescent lighting feeling like I am in a zoo for humans or something. I don't really spend my money on useless shit as it is so no reason to go, and if I ever went to a mall before, it was to go to a specific store. I know kids like to hang out there, but I was never one of those kids.

I like mom-and-pop stores, downtown areas, and so on. Happy to see that malls are dying, and downtown areas are experiencing a revival.

I'm honestly fine with mostly online shopping now. But, malls are pretty nostalgic for me sometimes.

it is a little sad. growing up in suburbia there wasn't much for kids to do to feel independent and out on their own than to go hang out at a mall. have good memories of riding bikes with my friends to go plunk down tokens at the arcade ( TMNT was the big one for us at the time ). my first "date" in grammar school was going to the mall / food court.

i understand the economics of it but agree that shopping for clothes online is shit, particularly for people who care about comfort. not to mention same day delivery is not universal and online punishes procrastination.

lol I like that analogy.

Malls over where I am are mainly jammed packed with every walks of life. I go there sometimes to get coffee from time to time and lunch before going to work. I live in western Canada by the way.

I don't enjoy buying clothes on the internet either, but then again I don't really enjoy shopping for clothes at all. So boring. I do prefer trying them on first though. Up until recently this was the big problem with the mall in my town (for me at any rate), it was almost all clothing stores. Now it's kind of getting back to having a variety of stores which makes it a more fun experience for me. We've got a traditional arcade and a VR arcade, a sort of specialty food store (don't know how else to describe it, it has seasonings, olive oil, exotic jerkys, etc), a decent food court, etc. It's usually pretty busy, but I do know two of the big stores in the mall, JC Penny and Macys, are struggling and have been for a while, but it doesn't seem like the mall is going anywhere just yet.

Malls are still quite active here. I don't like malls since they're made for people to just wander around in. I prefer to buy whatever I want quickly and when socializing I'd rather do it at a more engaging place.

Malls are so boring these days, tho. Everybody is just staring at their iPhones.