Cassidy McClurg | For The Post
Shopping malls have significantly lost popularity since the rise of online shopping and social media. Lately, social media has been diving into mall culture and even promoting it. The mall is coming back with real estate values increasing by 13% for malls. This means more people are going to the mall, boosting its value.
Sofia Smith, a freshman studying marketing, and Audrey Schlicher, a freshman studying environmental science, said they choose to go to the mall in Parkersburg, West Virginia, if they decide to go at all.
“I think there have been a lot of stores closing, like on East State Street,” Smith said. She said going to the outlet in Athens is not common for her at all.
This is an issue many towns in the United States are facing because of online shopping and COVID-19. Despite going to the mall being uncommon, the opposite is being marketed.
Simon Malls are major shopping and entertainment centers operated by Simon Property Group. SPG creates spaces to boost the economy and attract customers to businesses. There are multiple centers and outlets across the U.S.
Simon Malls has an account on Instagram that collaborates with brands and influencers to promote mall culture. Videos include people sending “love letters” to their local mall or skits about mall-related situations like mall walkers.
In 2014, The Guardian proposed malls were dying, so it is odd Simon Malls would want to invest in the rebirth of them. Although, it seems that is changing after over a decade.
The campaign from Simon Malls focuses on how the mall is the place you go when you don’t know what you’re looking for. By using storytelling and connecting with people’s memories, the campaign encourages people to go where “life happens.”
However, people do not hang out at malls like they used to. Yet, nostalgic Instagram reels pull people back to the mall. The mall brings people back to the analog, something everyone is obsessed with, getting people to physically interact with products and connect with their friends.
Generation Z is falling in love with nostalgia by romanticizing a teen and adult life they never experienced because of the COVID pandemic and rapid cultural changes. They envision the Millennials who hung out at Abercrombie and Fitch or Hot Topic. They wish for the mall experience shown in the Disney shows they watched.
“I feel like online shopping is a big factor,” Schlicher said. “I like the mall aspect, like being in person.”
The mall is more than shopping; it is an experience outside of the home. People can physically try on the clothes they would have impulsively bought online. All you have to do is go and browse to make lifelong memories. Oh well, you’ll find me at Auntie Anne’s with a few shopping bags.
Cassidy McClurg is a junior student studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note the opinions expressed in this column do not represent those of The Post. Want to talk to Cassidy about their column? Email cm303824@ohio.edu
