AUSTIN, Texas — The smell of baked cookies, the sound of shoppers moving about, the excitement of meeting up with friends at the food court: indoor malls evoke so many memories.
The U.S. is home to an estimated 1,150 malls. But retail experts expect that number to fall to 150 in the near future.
So are these nostalgic malls becoming extinct, or are some adapting?
Nothing quite symbolized the consumer culture of the 1980s in America like indoor shopping malls. It was the heyday of shopping centers like Austin's Highland Mall, which closed in 2015 after struggling to keep stores open
An analysis from Capital One projects nearly 90% of indoor shopping malls may close over the next 10 years. The challenge for mall owners is to find ways to attract new customers.
"We've joined TikTok, and that's a great avenue to get our message out to teens and Gen Z," Jana Griswold, the director of marketing at Austin's Barton Creek Square, said. "We're always looking at comments. We're looking at who's tagging us, who's sharing us."
Griswold said the mall continues to cater to families. But make no mistake: teens like Ahmad Shmies do have buying power.
"I came here yesterday, so twice this week," Shmies said.
"We walk around, we talk, we shop, we eat. Instead of just staying on our phones," 12 year-old Edelle Sprague said. "It's better than having our parents drive us around everywhere, which they don't want to do. It's nice for them to just drop us off at the mall, and we can hang out."
"But then you also get the chance to meet new friends and new people here," teenager Miles Leifiste added.
The socializing aspect is big. But so are the big name stores malls carry. From Nordstrom and Dillard's to LuluLemon and Abercrombie, the stores are all under one roof – and they are at 100% capacity.
"I think as other retail developments have come up, they just don't have the teen stores that we do. We have Hollister, Vans and then specialty stores like Box Lunch," Griswold said.
She said Barton Creek Square is back to pre-pandemic levels in terms of sales and traffic. Constant long lines at Auntie Anne's are proof.
In addition to eating and shopping, people also come to the mall for movies. The AMC Theatre at Barton Creek Square is one of the most visited AMC theaters in all of Texas.
It's all about the experience and instant gratification that you don't get from simply adding something to an online shopping cart.
"It's touch, try, buy at a mall. You can't get that online," Griswold said.
"If you shop online, you don't know if it looks cute or not. If you actually come and try it on you think, 'Oh, wow, I look good in this,'" Gen Z shopper Bentley Holsonback said.
Representatives from Simon Property said consumer demand is there. The company owns Barton Creek Square, as well as the Premium Outlets in Round Rock and San Marcos and The Domain in Austin. In fact, the Domain is actually undergoing a multi-million dollar renovation because people want to shop in person.