Unless you're one of the biggest retailers with the farthest reach — or lowest prices — in the country, you're probably facing some unforeseen challenges in this decade. Analysts and observant consumers have noticed how much our shopping habits have changed for years.
Related: Walmart turns heads with major announcement, beats Amazon
Take the decline of the traditional indoor shopping mall, for one. Once the robust pinnacle of the American economy and consumer model, many malls now sit vacant, more reminiscent of ghost towns or the set of a horror movie than a portrait of booming capitalism.
Stores that were hailed as central to our shopping experience, like JC Penney, Macy's, Express, and Rue21 have either filed for bankruptcy protection, shuttered swaths of locations, or both.
More Walmart:
- Walmart customers outraged over popular product price increase
- Walmart, Target, Costco make major 2025 announcement
- Walmart exec drops a bombshell about $840 billion market
Many malls across the country are in a doom loop; it's harder to attract tenants since mall foot traffic isn't what it used to be. And the remaining tenants are typically ensnared in untenably pricey lease agreements since most malls charge a premium for the privilege of being a mall retailer.
Dwindling sales, high rent payments, and a general decline in interest in malls make for a scary picture. Horror movie or not.
Retail landscapes are changing
For better or for worse, the way we shop is changing in a major way.
Make that several major ways.
Take a trip to your local big box store and you'll probably see it before you even walk through the doors.
Many new parking spots have been reserved for drive-up customers, who prefer to pay before getting their items and save the time. Stores prioritize these customers because they're guaranteed sales. And after covid, convenience and ease of purchase trumps pretty much everything else.
You'll also probably notice quite a few vacant lots at your nearest retail plaza.
A new report by Coresight predicts 2025 could see as many as 15,000 store closures across the U.S., nearly double the number we saw in 2024.
Related: Amazon quietly hikes the price of a key service
“Inflation and a growing preference among consumers to shop online to find the cheapest deals took a toll on brick-and-mortar retailers in 2024,” Coresight CEO Deborah Weinswig said of the findings.
"Not only do they [customers] want the best prices, but they also have no patience for stores that are constantly disorganized, out of stock and that deliver poor customer service," she added.
Walmart makes a surprising purchase
As more malls and other less-convenient plazas fold, more winning models replace them.
Such is the case in Pennsylvania, with Walmart revealing it recently purchased a sprawling 186-acre site of the Monroeville mall.
Walmart bought the site for about $34 million in cash from CBL Properties. It plans to work with Cypress Equities, a Texas firm, on the details of the purchase, which includes future development plans and operations.
Related: Formerly bankrupt Home Depot rival returns with major changes
The Monroeville mall is located less than 20 minutes outside of Pittsburgh and served as the shopping mainstay for the area since the 1960s. It features 1.2 million square feet of shopping space, including a movie theater, a Macy's, Dick's Sporting Goods, Barnes and Noble, and several large restaurant chains.
It can hold approximately 150 retailers, estimates say.
And, appropriately, the horror movie "Dawn of the Dead," was in fact shot on location at the mall.
Mark Rickel, Walmart corporate communications director, confirmed the sale went through, but remained mum on Walmart's intentions for the area.
“Walmart has been very interested in serving the community. It’s very early in the process. We’re very interested in being part of the redevelopment,” he said.
Cypress Equities added that it envisions “a new retail and commercial destination," for the space.
Related: Veteran fund manager delivers alarming S&P 500 forecast
