Community Chat

[Spurt]

@homedecor1 

Interesting..... I know things can vary depending on your state and city authorities and the pandemic. In our area in Texas everything is limited to 50% capacity in retail and restuarants.......And there have been many announcements of stores permanently closing due to bankruptcy....

I dont know about the malls havent even driven by one lately, BUT for the good news---the large popular Shopping Center, The Rim, was JUMPING and the parking lots were full----  This Shopping Center has just the right mix of stores.....the crowds are still there...People want to spend money....

Even a smaller shopping center near where my sister lives---plenty of cars---The Bed Bath & Beyond is open and is one of their stores that will not be closing in the future..and Bath & Body Works had a line that wrapped around....(only 50% capacity allowed) .... Old Navy, Ross's had plenty of customers....Salt Grass restuarant had quite a few cars too...But as everyone knows Pier 1 is GONE.....

Another small shopping center near the grocery store---Stein Mart closed all its stores for good and Party City was closed, Petco is still open, as were the "to go" fast food places...and the La-Z-Boy furniture store is open but not too many cars....

It's sad to see ---who survives and those that won't....

[Spurt]

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@qvcfreak wrote:

Our office was shutdown Dec 6th for 2 weeks.  Another thorough cleaning due to covid19. On Dec 5th a couple of us went to have lunch at Luby's. We went late to avoid crowds and sadly it was very empty. 

We went back Monday and Luby's has a "Thank you for the 20 years of patronage" on their sign. The Luby's in my hometown closed a few months ago. 

And January 4th, we are back to working from home. This time it's just a precaution. They want to avoid any positives in the office because of Christmas gatherings. 

We go back on the 20th since the 18th and 19th are State Holidays.

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@qvcfreak 

Someone is trying to buy the Luby's cafeterias here.....

[qvcfreak]

@Spurt  I’m in South Texas, I hope someone does. Not very many choices to eat by the office. 

[Porcelain]

Malls are filled with huge chain stores. In the past you had to go into the stores to purchase anything. Now all those same chain stores have websites and you can get more items from them than in the store.

And since the chain stores stopped bothering with specific training or skilled levels of pay for sales associates, there is no knowledge benefit to be gained by going into the stores. You may luck out and get waited on by an expert, but the chances of that are slim. So you can find a lot more info about an item online than you can find out from an associate. And online you can read reviews.

It didn't have to be that way, but the chain stores went for quick profits to give their shareholders and did not consider long term value or the logic of the customer experience. Now the only chain stores worth going into are very niche and sell items you can't easily find online or at a Walmart or Costco or that are expensive to ship from online, relative to their cost, like plywood and refrigerators etc.

What's saving the big hardware stores is that some subject matter experts are still employed there who can help you, even though I don't think they get paid much for their knowledge.

If there's no reason to go into a store, there's no reason to go into a mall. The chain stores are where the problem has been for a long time.

[Spurt]

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@ECBG wrote:

Malls have gone down recently but also New Years Day or around that time is a "s l o w" time in all stores since we just had Christmas.  Traditionally, people are still cleaning up, they're tired, and they're not going to go out to see the same items.

It has been said malls will be repurposed into living spaces and restaurants, although, some stores will make it.

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@ECBG 

Berfore the pandemic two of the malls were thriving---parking lots and or parking garages were still full....

However one very old mall is on its last legs----the bottom floor is all business offices of various kinds and a movie theater.. part of the upper floor was converted into a Flea Market....Burlingtons and Hobby Lobby are the main stores---(Hobby Lobby still does a good business)....but there are many empty store fronts....in the same large shopping center, you drive down the parking lot and there's a Target that does a thriving business....many people said that the Target should have been built and connected to the main part of the mall and opened one side of the Target store to the mall area to help all the businesses....poor planning....

[Spurt]

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@qvcfreak wrote:

@Spurt  I’m in South Texas, I hope someone does. Not very many choices to eat by the office. 

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@qvcfreak 

There is one not too far from where I lived, the food was always good they always did a good business 

By Sarah Blaskovich

11:01 AM on Sep 22, 2020 CDT

In a surprising turn of events, the wealthy Texas restaurateurs who operate Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, Pappasito’s Cantina and Pappas Bros. Steakhouse have filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission to evaluate whether they should purchase Luby’s Inc........

[AuntG]

OP paints a bleak picture. I'm not sure how our mall I did this year because I haven't ventured out. Can't help but feel sad, like I did when the downtown department stores closed and moved out to the malls.

[hckynut]

@homedecor1 

That is a fact about small and even large businesses. Many went with the 14 days to bend the curve. Now what, 10 months later?

There is a reason some very large businesses are moving from 1 state to another. Small businesses do not have the resources to have that option. Those 14 days spelled the end to many businesses that are gone for good. And now look around!

hckynut 

[dsw503]

I have not been to a mall since March, so I have no personal experience to speak of. For anyone who is interested in how malls have been changing even before Covid, check out the documentary, "Jasper Mall," available on AZ Prime. (Free if you are a Prime member.) It's about a mall in Alabama that fallen on hard times. After watching it, I did some research on how the mall has been impacted by Covid. I was pleasantly surprised that it is being repurposed in a new way.

[Lilysmom1]

@homedecor1  et al such sad stories.  Is the fate of the outlet malls the same?  I am in Eastern Canada and DH and I visit Maine and NH regularly when borders are open to sight see and shop.  S aka Lilysmom