As the the retail apocalypse ravages the US, more than 9,100 stores are expected to close in 2019. And malls across the country are dying as department stores like Macy’s and Sears, once important anchors for mall foot traffic, are closing down for good.
A report from Credit Suisse in 2017 showed that between 20% to 25% of malls are expected to close by 2022.
“The department store industry has suffered in recent decades,” said retail historian Vicki Howard, who authored the book “From Main Street to Mall: The Rise and Fall of the American Department Store” and is a lecturer at the University of Essex. “And their path is closely connected to that of the shopping mall.”
As department stores like Sears and JCPenney shutter, they leave holes in traditional malls, which can sometimes lead to the shuttering of the entire complex. Since 2010, malls have either adapted or succumbed to the retail apocalypse.
Read the entire story here in Bisnow.com
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