Shopping Malls Losing Tenants

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Store display.

They cannot fill the floor space Sears left behind at a local mall. The department store took north, south, east and west retail space. Sears went out of business but that space is still empty, except for the lower floor.

The new tenant, a furniture store took a portion of it. The rest is still boarded up. I don’t know who owns the whole mall where Sears was an anchor store, but what are they going to do with that retail space? Probably cut it up into smaller units like the furniture store.

The problem though are tenants. Who will take up the space when businesses are moving house and going online? Mall owners could reduce rent as an incentive. They won’t like the idea because they’ve been losing money with that empty space for almost three years, before the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.

Stores that are doing well might consider moving into bigger premises. Apple for example. Online shopping or not, Apple at the neighboring mall always has long lines, with its iPad hugging sales reps explaining why the company has numbered phones. Will they go as far as iPhone 33?

If Apple doesn’t need the space, one of these big fitness centers might take over the top floor. If not, mall management should consider turning a part of it into a baby mall. Mummy leaves baby with mall babysitting and shops till she drops.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.

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