01-01-2017, 05:23 AM
(01-01-2017, 12:27 AM)pbrower2a Wrote: But even ethnic change can hurt the mall. The boutique stores inside are tailor-made for well-heeled white middle-class shoppers but because of their rigid style of management, they can't adapt to ethnic change even if the potential clientele is still middle-class if the potential customers in the area are now black, Asian, or Hispanic.
Good post but I'm not sure I agree with this part. There's pretty high turnover in mall boutique stores, even in healthy malls; I'd expect ethnic changes to be reflected in the store population within a few years.
Quote:The idea behind the traditional department store was that the clerks who would remain employed for some time would be knowledgeable about the merchandise.
I miss sales people who actually knew their merchandise and could provide good information and recommendations as part of their service. I'm not sure they were ever common at malls, though. Seems like most boomers are more interested in lowest price than in best value for the price.