How Malls Die (Slowly, Then All At Once)

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk,

300 Class B Malls in the US are dying a slow death.

How Malls Die 

Bloomberg discusses the Crystal Mall in Waterford Connecticut as an example of the fate of a Typical Class B Mall, Anywhere, USA.

All in all, as many as 25,000 stores could close in the U.S. this year, mostly in malls, according to Coresight. That would demolish the previous record of about 9,800 closures, set in 2019.

Between bankruptcies, distressed owners, store closures and existing vacancies, at least half of Crystal Mall’s square footage is now at risk. And hundreds of other B malls around the country are in the same boat.

Class B Mall Locations

The lead image is a composite I created from an interactive Bloomberg graphic. 

Six retailers in the mall have filed for bankruptcy in the last three years.

Retailers such as Macys, the Christmas Tree Shops, etc., (black and white hatched) have not said they are leaving the Waterford mall, but they have announced closures.

With 35 vacant storefronts already, the mall appears doomed.

The same fate awaits hundreds of similar malls across the country.