Malls look for new anchors in storm

Among American Dream's planned attractions are a Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park and DreamWorks Waterpark; a Big Snow America 800-foot indoor ski slope; an observation wheel with 26 climate-controlled gondolas providing panoramic views of the New York skyline; a performing arts theater; an National Hockey League-size ice rink; a Cinemex X4D 1,400-seat complex with 12 double screens and in-movie dining; Sea Life and Merlin Legoland discovery centers: Sea Life will feature a tropical ocean tank with a walk-through underwater tunnel; Legoland, described as stepping into a giant box of Lego, is designed for families with young children; and there will be an 18-hole miniature golf course.

But it's not all fun and games. Future retail tenants lined up include Saks Fifth Avenue, Hermes, Microsoft, Lululemon, Old Navy, Victoria's Secret, H&M, Zara and Primark, among 450 stores, specialty shops and restaurants.

"A rich blend of global retail influenced by high streets from Bond Street in London to Soho in New York City", the mall's website exclaims.

But at any mall, the cash registers need to be ringing, and retail sales still play a key role.

US holiday sales in 2017 increased 5.5 percent to $692 billion, as rising wages, employment and confidence put consumers in a spending mood, the National Retail Federation said. That number includes $138.4 billion in online and other non-store sales, up 11.5 percent.

"We knew going in that retailers were going to have a good holiday season, but the results are even better than anything we could have hoped for, especially given the misleading headlines of the past year," NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. "With this as a starting point and tax cuts putting more money into consumers' pockets, we are confident that retailers will have a very good year ahead."

And in places where malls have faltered, omnipresent Amazon has moved in.

"Ironically, a few abandoned malls I've shot in my hometown are now being used for Amazon fulfillment centers," Cleveland photojournalist Seph Lawless (see sidebar below) told China Daily.

"I've seen the inside of Amazon fulfillment centers; it's intense, I mean if they wanted, they could have their robots doing everything inside those gigantic centers. They don't need any humans in their fulfillment centers," he said.

"Amazon is choosing to create jobs and choosing to pay good wages with benefits," Lawless said. "It's because of these factors no other retail giant or store can really follow that same model effectively."

Amazon also opened its first Amazon Go store in Seattle in January and plans another six in the US, according to recode.net, a tech news site. At the Go stores, the "Just Walk Out" app lets shoppers scan their phones upon entering and pick items off shelves. They then are charged electronically with no need to queue up.