I’ve not been shy about my love affair with the traditional interior mall as a retail institution.
While skeptics have been predicting their inevitable death, the interior mall seems to innovate and survive in spite of its critics.
But could the disruption of the Covid-19 pandemic finally have done them in?
Looks and feels a little strange
I was prompt to investigate three of Saskatoon’s indoor malls upon the provincial government’s reopening in May.
The first few day’s traffic was undeniably sparse; it has certainly picked up since then but not to the capacity of pre-pandemic.
Many stores were not prepared to swing open the doors and by my estimation only about 50 per cent of retailers were back in business upon the reopen date.
And those that were, and continue to be, stringent with their pandemic protocols.
Don’t follow the leader
Shoppers I have encountered are either respectfully mindful of distancing or completely oblivious.
This is further complicated by the fact that each retailer seems to have taken a different perspective on their mandatory preventative measures.
Typically you are being asked to sanitize coming into a store, some will offer it going out as well.
All stores have indicated pathways to eliminate less one on one contact with designated entries and exits.
When in doubt, best practice is to ask a store employee if they don’t approach you first upon entering.
It’s definitely a process to go shopping now but it’s still worth it.
Why does it even matter?
I love the experience of mall shopping, especially in our climate.
There is a greater picture though.
The mall employs hundreds of people in retail stores as well as staff to secure and maintain the facility.
There are many restaurant franchise owners who have banked big time on the new food hall renovation at Midtown, and they need the shoppers to come back.
And we can’t forget, with traffic, new business will follow.
Both the H&M and MEC storefronts indicate they’re still coming but no longer define as to when. But I guess it’s a good sign that the decals are still even up?
According to Statistics Canada, Saskatchewan is at least faring better than other provinces.
April sales were down 14.8 per cent for Saskatchewan and 18.4 per cent for Alberta over March 2020.
Ontario and Quebec have felt the impact far worse, recording drops of 32.8 per cent and 27.8, respectively.
Online sales surged and retailers who had a presence cashed in with a 9.5 per cent gain in sales.
No word yet on whether May or June sales rebounded though it appears people are out spending again.
All signs indicate this won’t be over quickly, but hopefully this is not our new normal forever.
Posted by Kelly Macsymic
