[ssiguy]

Yes, many malls are dying but I think the reason for this has not really been discussed. It's not like people today love dying of heat exposure, getting soaked in the rain, or freezing to death more than they did 30 or 40 years ago which was always the big draw to the mall...……….it allowed you to shop in a comfortable, climate controlled environment.

Much of the decline of malls has little to do with the malls themselves and everything to do with demographics. These malls were built to serve their communities and the shopping demographic near them. Now those 1970/80s suburbs have gone from Mom & Dad and 3 or 4 kids to suburb of retirees and the new families only have 1 kid. Malls thrive on discretionary spending power which the young parents and their kids once offered but now those discretionary shoppers are gone. This is why many malls are dead EXCEPT for the grocery store and pharmacy because no matter what your age, you always need those 2 basics.

The big box stores on the outer suburbs are simply doing what the malls did...……...following their shoppers. The thing that will give the big box outlets and "power centres" more longevity is that they are MUCH cheaper to build and have MUCH lower maintenance costs resulting in generally lower prices for their leases and hence for consumers.

It's not that the idea of shopping in a mall has become unappealing but rather that the shoppers that led to their rise have disappeared.