What NEW STORE in your LOCAL MALL do you HATE?

[NJxxJon]

Theres a lot of crappy stores out there! Which ones are now in your 2008 hate list from your local mall??? ALL OF YOU POST! :duh:

[Kmart4life]

Sears/Sears Essentials & Dollar Tree.

[Ameskid]

How about the ENTIRE MALL?!

Mama Fu's- closed due to high rent
Coldstone Creamery- closed due to high rent
CiCi's Pizza- closed due to high rent
Roly Poly- closed due to high rent
Scrubs and More- closed due to high rent
Margo's Pet Spaw- closed due to high rent

How many years has it been open?  Only about 4.

4 YEARS!!! 6 STORES!!! Do the math.

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by Ameskid
How about the ENTIRE MALL?!

Mama Fu's- closed due to high rent
Coldstone Creamery- closed due to high rent
CiCi's Pizza- closed due to high rent
Roly Poly- closed due to high rent
Scrubs and More- closed due to high rent
Margo's Pet Spaw- closed due to high rent

How many years has it been open?  Only about 4.

4 YEARS!!! 6 STORES!!! Do the math.

I hate high -rent ........sucks.

[C. Fontaine]

Oh man, everyone around here hated the Worcester Common Outlets.  It was a failure as a mall, never able to fill more than half of it's space.  Here are pictures from about 6 months before it closed.  It was labeled by the Telegram & Gazette a "failure as a mall."

The fate of the site is still in limbo.  They're trying to push some kind of community center.  As far as I know the office building is also still vacant.

http://www.amesfanclub.com/imageserver/Junk/local/wco/

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by C. Fontaine
Oh man, everyone around here hated the Worcester Common Outlets.  It was a failure as a mall, never able to fill more than half of it's space.  Here are pictures from about 6 months before it closed.  It was labeled by the Telegram & Gazette a "failure as a mall."

The fate of the site is still in limbo.  They're trying to push some kind of community center.  As far as I know the office building is also still vacant.

http://www.amesfanclub.com/imageserver/Junk/local/wco/

Ok ....1st...The Carpeting inside the mall needs to go...BLEH....Then......fix that style of parking to 2008 .... :bum:

[dmx10101]

Originally posted by C. Fontaine
Oh man, everyone around here hated the Worcester Common Outlets.  It was a failure as a mall, never able to fill more than half of it's space.  Here are pictures from about 6 months before it closed.  It was labeled by the Telegram & Gazette a "failure as a mall."

The fate of the site is still in limbo.  They're trying to push some kind of community center.  As far as I know the office building is also still vacant.

http://www.amesfanclub.com/imageserver/Junk/local/wco/

That place looks brand new..thats pretty sad. So it's abandoned and boarded up now?

[Marc82]

Originally posted by dmx10101
That place looks brand new..thats pretty sad. So it's abandoned and boarded up now?

It was one of those stupid malls that was built in the late 60s/early 70s as part of Urban Renewal. AFIAK it was always a dead mall. Then in the early 1990s it was completely revamped and converted to an Outlet Mall. For some reason that didn't work and the mall died again. I remember there used to be a sign for it on either I-84 or I-91 in Hartford, Connecticut that said "Sorry Kittery." Kittery of course being the town in Maine where there's tons of outlet shopping.

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by Marc82

Originally posted by dmx10101
That place looks brand new..thats pretty sad. So it's abandoned and boarded up now?

It was one of those stupid malls that was built in the late 60s/early 70s as part of Urban Renewal. AFIAK it was always a dead mall. Then in the early 1990s it was completely revamped and converted to an Outlet Mall. For some reason that didn't work and the mall died again. I remember there used to be a sign for it on either I-84 or I-91 in Hartford, Connecticut that said "Sorry Kittery." Kittery of course being the town in Maine where there's tons of outlet shopping.

People, like in my small ass town here in NJ, have no motivation or interest in opening a business and KEEP UP with it. We have a "main street" where the rent is high and no "trendy" companies will come open anything -also being out by no state highways....so I KNOW ALL ABOUT "re-vamping" tries.  :warning:

[C. Fontaine]

Originally posted by Marc82

Originally posted by dmx10101
That place looks brand new..thats pretty sad. So it's abandoned and boarded up now?

It was one of those stupid malls that was built in the late 60s/early 70s as part of Urban Renewal. AFIAK it was always a dead mall. Then in the early 1990s it was completely revamped and converted to an Outlet Mall. For some reason that didn't work and the mall died again. I remember there used to be a sign for it on either I-84 or I-91 in Hartford, Connecticut that said "Sorry Kittery." Kittery of course being the town in Maine where there's tons of outlet shopping.

Yeah, they never were able to fill more than half of their space, it's always been dead as there is no easy access to it from any major routes being located in downtown Worc.  Everyone just flocked to the Greendale mall once that opened, located directly off Gold Star Blvd. and the hwy.  It is not boarded up, just closed to public access.  I only went there for Sports Authority.

A nifty feature here was when you walked in a mall entrance, it would "speak" to you.  In other works the door triggered a recording welcoming you to the WCO.

It looks brand new due to the Worc. revitalization project.  Worcester has been trying to revitalize itself for over 20 years, only recently it has begun to shape up.  You could say due to the fact that mayor Tim Murray is now Lt. Governor.  Union Station has been completely restored, which you can actually see in one of those photo's.  The never ending 146 interchange is almost done, although they did officially declare it completed.  And much of the construction around Main St. and the like is slowly disappearing.

They were actually filming the TV show Cops in Worcester last year.  They ended pulling out though due to public outcry and citizens dying to be "tv stars."

[XISMZERO]

I wouldn't say "hate" since I don't feel that level of strong disdain about mall stores. If we change the topic a tad, let's change that to "annoy"... if you characterize it that way, I can't stand (about malls)... so much I've come up with a "shopping list" worth of it (pardon the pun).

- All the jewerly stores in malls. At my local mall, Westfarms, which doesn't entirely count as it's one of the "richer" malls in the state, there's about 15 jewelry stores.

- Silly stores: stores that attempt to serve a "niche" market but you're surprised they can pay their monthly rent (and some can with their exorbitant prices for certain things). Like "Teavana" -- seems like a pretentious tea version of Starbucks.

- Those asian junk store boutiques where everything is tacky looking, cheap, always 50% off and looks like the store is clearanced and closing up next week.

- Those obnoxious carts that clog up the center of the aisles. I remember a time when I was growing up, you could actually walk in the center of a mall's corridor. Now, you have to see piece of junk no one would buy this side of QVC. Every hair-extension, hair-straightener, hand-cream, face cream, head fleece and $10 knockoff sunglasses that should be a fraction of that price. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

- Forever 21: Always a mess and seriously, they must pay 3x the rest of the mall tenants pay for their outrageous lighting bill. Nod to DSW Shoe Warehouse...

- Lack of convenience stores/pharmacies/newsstands in malls. Westfarms is a target for this again. They, like most malls in my state, used to have CVS inside the mall. Now, you can even buy a pack of gum in the mall or a quick drink. Now with CVS pulling of malls for their own big box standalones, we're gonna see less of CVS at malls.

- Hollister's entire porch facade. Get over yourselves.

- Two Gamestops not including the one that might be down the street in a stripmall.

- fye. Enough said.

- Too much homogeny. Not enough comic book or indie-themed stores.

- Steve & Berry's: Junk, junk, junk. I get why they're so popular: all the "poor" college kids can snatch up the cheapest garb they can muster here so they can fashionably drag down my generation even further.

- Smug malls are getting smug about their private property (and not allowing people to take pictures) and high about their profitability per square inch.

Good topic, made me think a bit.

[dmx10101]

Originally posted by XISMZERO
I wouldn't say "hate" since I don't feel that level of strong disdain about mall stores. If we change the topic a tad, let's change that to "annoy"... if you characterize it that way, I can't stand (about malls)... so much I've come up with a "shopping list" worth of it (pardon the pun).

- All the jewerly stores in malls. At my local mall, Westfarms, which doesn't entirely count as it's one of the "richer" malls in the state, there's about 15 jewelry stores.

- Silly stores: stores that attempt to serve a "niche" market but you're surprised they can pay their monthly rent (and some can with their exorbitant prices for certain things). Like "Teavana" -- seems like a pretentious tea version of Starbucks.

- Those asian junk store boutiques where everything is tacky looking, cheap, always 50% off and looks like the store is clearanced and closing up next week.

- Those obnoxious carts that clog up the center of the aisles. I remember a time when I was growing up, you could actually walk in the center of a mall's corridor. Now, you have to see piece of junk no one would buy this side of QVC. Every hair-extension, hair-straightener, hand-cream, face cream, head fleece and $10 knockoff sunglasses that should be a fraction of that price. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

- Forever 21: Always a mess and seriously, they must pay 3x the rest of the mall tenants pay for their outrageous lighting bill. Nod to DSW Shoe Warehouse...

- Lack of convenience stores/pharmacies/newsstands in malls. Westfarms is a target for this again. They, like most malls in my state, used to have CVS inside the mall. Now, you can even buy a pack of gum in the mall or a quick drink. Now with CVS pulling of malls for their own big box standalones, we're gonna see less of CVS at malls.

- Hollister's entire porch facade. Get over yourselves.

- Two Gamestops not including the one that might be down the street in a stripmall.

- fye. Enough said.

- Too much homogeny. Not enough comic book or indie-themed stores.

- Steve & Berry's: Junk, junk, junk. I get why they're so popular: all the "poor" college kids can snatch up the cheapest garb they can muster here so they can fashionably drag down my generation even further.

- Smug malls are getting smug about their private property (and not allowing people to take pictures) and high about their profitability per square inch.

Good topic, made me think a bit.

I agree with everything, but I've got to disagree about Steve & Barrys. I really like that store. They have very good deals on nice quality clothes. I've bought quite a bit of stuff there. I bought a pair of shoes there for $15 and I wear them almost everyday. When my parents came to visit me here in GA, thats one of the place I took them to and they really liked it. They said they wished that there was one by them in FLA to shop at and keep in mind their in there 50's.

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by XISMZERO
I wouldn't say "hate" since I don't feel that level of strong disdain about mall stores. If we change the topic a tad, let's change that to "annoy"... if you characterize it that way, I can't stand (about malls)... so much I've come up with a "shopping list" worth of it (pardon the pun).

- All the jewerly stores in malls. At my local mall, Westfarms, which doesn't entirely count as it's one of the "richer" malls in the state, there's about 15 jewelry stores.

- Silly stores: stores that attempt to serve a "niche" market but you're surprised they can pay their monthly rent (and some can with their exorbitant prices for certain things). Like "Teavana" -- seems like a pretentious tea version of Starbucks.

- Those asian junk store boutiques where everything is tacky looking, cheap, always 50% off and looks like the store is clearanced and closing up next week.

- Those obnoxious carts that clog up the center of the aisles. I remember a time when I was growing up, you could actually walk in the center of a mall's corridor. Now, you have to see piece of junk no one would buy this side of QVC. Every hair-extension, hair-straightener, hand-cream, face cream, head fleece and $10 knockoff sunglasses that should be a fraction of that price. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

- Forever 21: Always a mess and seriously, they must pay 3x the rest of the mall tenants pay for their outrageous lighting bill. Nod to DSW Shoe Warehouse...

- Lack of convenience stores/pharmacies/newsstands in malls. Westfarms is a target for this again. They, like most malls in my state, used to have CVS inside the mall. Now, you can even buy a pack of gum in the mall or a quick drink. Now with CVS pulling of malls for their own big box standalones, we're gonna see less of CVS at malls.

- Hollister's entire porch facade. Get over yourselves.

- Two Gamestops not including the one that might be down the street in a stripmall.

- fye. Enough said.

- Too much homogeny. Not enough comic book or indie-themed stores.

- Steve & Berry's: Junk, junk, junk. I get why they're so popular: all the "poor" college kids can snatch up the cheapest garb they can muster here so they can fashionably drag down my generation even further.

- Smug malls are getting smug about their private property (and not allowing people to take pictures) and high about their profitability per square inch.

Good topic, made me think a bit.

Yeah I worked for CVS, and BIGboxing is the new fad, and apperently ---word is theft was too high for some CVS's ....Batteries, Condoms, Employee theft...........eh live steals.....on...haha

[GothicPrincess]

Originally posted by XISMZERO
I wouldn't say "hate" since I don't feel that level of strong disdain about mall stores. If we change the topic a tad, let's change that to "annoy"... if you characterize it that way, I can't stand (about malls)... so much I've come up with a "shopping list" worth of it (pardon the pun).

- All the jewerly stores in malls. At my local mall, Westfarms, which doesn't entirely count as it's one of the "richer" malls in the state, there's about 15 jewelry stores.

- Silly stores: stores that attempt to serve a "niche" market but you're surprised they can pay their monthly rent (and some can with their exorbitant prices for certain things). Like "Teavana" -- seems like a pretentious tea version of Starbucks.

- Those asian junk store boutiques where everything is tacky looking, cheap, always 50% off and looks like the store is clearanced and closing up next week.

- Those obnoxious carts that clog up the center of the aisles. I remember a time when I was growing up, you could actually walk in the center of a mall's corridor. Now, you have to see piece of junk no one would buy this side of QVC. Every hair-extension, hair-straightener, hand-cream, face cream, head fleece and $10 knockoff sunglasses that should be a fraction of that price. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

- Forever 21: Always a mess and seriously, they must pay 3x the rest of the mall tenants pay for their outrageous lighting bill. Nod to DSW Shoe Warehouse...

- Lack of convenience stores/pharmacies/newsstands in malls. Westfarms is a target for this again. They, like most malls in my state, used to have CVS inside the mall. Now, you can even buy a pack of gum in the mall or a quick drink. Now with CVS pulling of malls for their own big box standalones, we're gonna see less of CVS at malls.

- Hollister's entire porch facade. Get over yourselves.

- Two Gamestops not including the one that might be down the street in a stripmall.

- fye. Enough said.

- Too much homogeny. Not enough comic book or indie-themed stores.

- Steve & Berry's: Junk, junk, junk. I get why they're so popular: all the "poor" college kids can snatch up the cheapest garb they can muster here so they can fashionably drag down my generation even further.

- Smug malls are getting smug about their private property (and not allowing people to take pictures) and high about their profitability per square inch.

Good topic, made me think a bit.

About Steve & Barrys...I'm not a "college kid". I'm a working 31 year old mom of 2. I buy my stuff there, I LOVE the statement t's in the men's department. I own about 15 of them so far. Funny shirts, good sayings, quotes...I also have a jacket from there, which is very comfortable, and durable. Their stuff is not junk, if you take the time to check them out.

[Marc82]

Gotta agree FYE sucks. I mean in my local mall (15 mins away) we have FYE and BEST BUY. Why would I buy my CD at FYE when the same one is much cheaper at BEST BUY? Plus BEST BUY doesn't sell porno.

Steve and Barry's is allright. I like their novelty Tshirts when the sayings on them. (Though they don't come in my size).

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by Marc82
Gotta agree FYE sucks. I mean in my local mall (15 mins away) we have FYE and BEST BUY. Why would I buy my CD at FYE when the same one is much cheaper at BEST BUY? Plus BEST BUY doesn't sell porno.

Steve and Barry's is allright. I like their novelty Tshirts when the sayings on them. (Though they don't come in my size).

Ah.....FYE has too many employees following you around for security ....and that crap annoys me....CD sales will go down in 4 years either way....

[thedisneystore967]

More then I can count. Probably the thing I absolutely cannot stand is that the entire mall does not have a music, video, or toy store. There used to be Sam Goody, Suncoast, and KB Toys.

I'm TRYING to persuade the mall managament to put in Saturday Matinee, Coconuts or Wherehouse Music and a local toy store called Whirlygigs and Whimsies. They're certainly better off putting these stores in rather than leaving the mall with a 7% vacancy rate, which, unfortunutly, is what Bethesda residents are stuck with.

[C. Fontaine]

I also dislike FYE...

[Ameskid]

Weird....that mall posted earlier looks SO much like Owings Mills Mall in Baltimore!  Disneystore is lucky to have so many nice malls in Baltimore....hot 'bout moving a few to Cincinnati?  You have too many! :D

[Hadley]

The only good thing about fye is their used cd/dvd section. Ive rarely ever bought cd's there at full price, and dont even bother with the dvd section (theyre all at the ridiculous $29.99 and up price range).

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by Hadley
The only good thing about fye is their used cd/dvd section. Ive rarely ever bought cd's there at full price, and dont even bother with the dvd section (theyre all at the ridiculous $29.99 and up price range).

Thats why CD stores are going out dead too because the one near me had a customer flip with a used, scratched CD...even though they checked mine every time I tried to buy one...

[davidsky]

Here's a list
Best Buy- Employees are idiots
Cheap asian stores
Kiosks
The cell phone places
Sbarro
FYE- prices are high
Abercrombie, American Eagle, Aeropostale- KMart clothes nicely displayed and sold for 3 times the price.
Hot Topic!

[NJxxJon]

Originally posted by davidsky
Here's a list
Best Buy- Employees are idiots
Cheap asian stores
Kiosks
The cell phone places
Sbarro
FYE- prices are high
Abercrombie, American Eagle, Aeropostale- KMart clothes nicely displayed and sold for 3 times the price.
Hot Topic!

Our hot topic was killed. They went "new school" and no more discount rack.....F going to the mall anymore.

[davidsky]

Originally posted by NJxxJon

Our hot topic was killed. They went "new school" and no more discount rack.....F going to the mall anymore.

I'm sure the kids love HT but anyone who was actually "cool" would never shop there and they would make all their own clothes. The folks who buy stuff at HT should go into Michael's or AC Moore someday. Their heads would explode.

[Ameskid]

Sam Goody is owned by F.Y.E, right?  They have EXCELLENT discounted prices there.  I was able to get a 512mb MP3 player for about 10 or 15 dollars and now I think they're ten.  They also have Skullcandy in-ear earbuds (the only type that fit me) for ten dollars.  So FYE itself may be bad, but not necessarily so for its affiliates.

[XISMZERO]

About Steve & Berry's... I chocked up a good laugh at some of the t-shirts but come on... their stuff is absolute crapola in a box, beyond the pale bland, ugly, cheapest example of Chinese factory junk -- simple enough for today's youth who realize they have to clothe themselves at some point. Spend a few more bucks and you can find much nicer stuff elsewhere like Target. S&B is caters to college kids who will spend most of their money on beer and snacks. Everyone else? I don't get the appeal at all.

About Hot Topic... their stuff is cheap quality -- but their prices don't reflect that. Sorry but $22 for a t-shirt with some minimalist iron-on pattern with a two cent slogan I could do without is downright stupid. They should be charging $10 for a Super Mario tee. I used to pop in and buy a t-shirt or two, but I don't like their sizing, lack of decent quality t-shirts for $20 a piece.

Express has nice stuff, but if you don't hit up their sales rack, you're paying $88 for a very nice pair of pants. I won't. I'll go to H&M and get some for $25 to $40.

I'm really getting more into H&M for casual and dress -- problem is half of them don't have men's departments...

[davidsky]

Originally posted by Ameskid
Sam Goody is owned by F.Y.E, right?  They have EXCELLENT discounted prices there.  I was able to get a 512mb MP3 player for about 10 or 15 dollars and now I think they're ten.  They also have Skullcandy in-ear earbuds (the only type that fit me) for ten dollars.  So FYE itself may be bad, but not necessarily so for its affiliates.

10 dollar earbuds? You're just hurting your ears and listening to crappy sound. Save up some cash and buy Etymotics.

[Ameskid]

Originally posted by davidsky

Originally posted by Ameskid
Sam Goody is owned by F.Y.E, right?  They have EXCELLENT discounted prices there.  I was able to get a 512mb MP3 player for about 10 or 15 dollars and now I think they're ten.  They also have Skullcandy in-ear earbuds (the only type that fit me) for ten dollars.  So FYE itself may be bad, but not necessarily so for its affiliates.

10 dollar earbuds? You're just hurting your ears and listening to crappy sound. Save up some cash and buy Etymotics.

You have never tried Skullcandies.  They were originally about $30, so they're not just any complimentary-flight earbuds.  These are good.  Plus, my only requirements are that 10 they work, and 20 that they fit into my tiny ears, so I'm not that serious about them.

[thedisneystore967]

Originally posted by Ameskid
Weird....that mall posted earlier looks SO much like Owings Mills Mall in Baltimore!  Disneystore is lucky to have so many nice malls in Baltimore....hot 'bout moving a few to Cincinnati?  You have too many! :D

It really bothers me to be nitpicky, but I live in Potomac MD. Bethesda has the closest mall to Potomac. I'm around 50 miles away from Baltimore, just as a ballpark figure. And, the malls around here aren't actually that good. Lakeforest Mall is missing 3 out of 5 restaurants, Montgomery, as I already mentioned, has no music, video, or toy store, White Flint is really dirty, and Wheaton has a mortifying history of crime.

If you want them up in Cincy, take any one you want except for Lakeforest. Thats a pretty cool mall, once you get past the restaurant problem.

[Ameskid]

Originally posted by thedisneystore967

Originally posted by Ameskid
Weird....that mall posted earlier looks SO much like Owings Mills Mall in Baltimore!  Disneystore is lucky to have so many nice malls in Baltimore....hot 'bout moving a few to Cincinnati?  You have too many! :D

It really bothers me to be nitpicky, but I live in Potomac MD. Bethesda has the closest mall to Potomac. I'm around 50 miles away from Baltimore, just as a ballpark figure. And, the malls around here aren't actually that good. Lakeforest Mall is missing 3 out of 5 restaurants, Montgomery, as I already mentioned, has no music, video, or toy store, White Flint is really dirty, and Wheaton has a mortifying history of crime.

If you want them up in Cincy, take any one you want except for Lakeforest. Thats a pretty cool mall, once you get past the restaurant problem.

Hey, I've been to Montgomery Mall (isn't that the one where they had the Wards, but now it's a 2-story Target?) and Wheaton, and they're cooler than the ones we have around here in Sin-sin-nati.