Quote:
Originally Posted by Handro
My sister lives near one of their malls in Italy. I never realized it was an "Ikea mall" when I've gone (although I just looked it up out of curiosity and it is indeed run by Ingka Centres), it seems like just a normal mall but with an Ikea as one of the flagship stores. I'm curious what "play" they want to make that would differentiate them from any other American mall...
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Yeah it's hard to look at the US retail market and think, "this place really needs more malls"... virtually every American market is oversaturated, and brick/mortar retail is stagnant with the growth of online shopping which Covid is only accelerations. So, not sure what these guys are smoking.
Looking at their Europe properties, they're all very suburban, right off a motorway. So I don't expect Ingka to do urban shopping malls in the US.
I think they could probably find some dying suburban malls to reinvigorate, though. Stratford Square comes to mind. But generally Americans aren't in love with the enclosed mall anymore. Most Americans live in a suburban environment and when they go to shop or dine they're looking for a more traditional urban experience, either in a real city/town or a lifestyle center. Compare that to Europe where most people live in denser neighborhoods and drive out to the malls on the edge during the weekend (this happens a little here too, at Old Orchard, Woodfield, Oakbrook).