Are Malls Melting Down?
Posted by casey on 08-01-2008
After reading MediaPost's coverage (reg. required) of the inescapable "massive mall meltdown," my mind immediately flashed back to Women's Wear Daily's report about the thriving state of the teen-targeted contemporary market.
When teens and tweens can emotionally connect to a brand they love, they will spend their hard-earned dollars to buy just about anything it offers. From Abercrombie & Fitch to Esprit, this year's 10 most familiar youth brands have figured out how to capture this fickle group.
With music blaring from the front doors of its 360 stores, Abercrombie & Fitch welcomes teens, who flock to it for its cool casual look — perfect for campus or the beach. The brand is so strong that it even managed to bump megabrand Disney from the top spot this year. Even in a tough economy, Abercrombie & Fitch has proven it can still have a growth spurt as it will open a slew of stores — 110 units in North America alone are planned so far.
1. Abercrombie & Fitch
2. American Eagle Outfitters
3. Disney
4. Guess
5. Candie's
6. Limited
7. Limited Too
8. J. Crew
9. Express
10. Esprit
With the weakening economy, shopping isn't exactly a top priority for anyone. While tweens and teens still have a little cushy disposable income, I'm not sure that this is enough to sustain the youth contemporary market alone. Nearly all of the brands on WWD's list have reported shrinking sales in comparison to last summer, which is frankly unsurprising, considering a pair of denim at good ol' Abercrombie hover around $90.
Stores like Abercrombie, American Eagle Outfitters, and Guess are known to charge twice the price just for the addition of their label's logo. When kids can get comparable fashion at big box stores like Target or copy-cats like Forever 21, "mall boutiques" are likely to feel their purse strings tighten.
As parental supervision requirements become more prevalent in shopping centers, the enormous, monotonous mall is looking less and less appealing as a teen hangout. Having the luxury to log onto the internet and have the same stuff sent directly to your doorstep, saving time and gas, makes it even harder to head to the mall.
One final thought: with so few job opportunities at the moment, will teens take what little extra cash they have and spend it on new technology, pricey entertainment (like those pesky $12 movie tickets), or luxury brands loved by tween celeb idols (Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang, Chloe) than a $50 T-shirt emblazoned with a mall brand?
