# Hangzhou Outlet: The lonely shopping mall.



## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

A fortress of solitude. Saturday afternoon and not a customer in site.









Menswear shop, but no men to buy the garments.









...another one...








...and another.








Lonely this Christmas?....very lonely in June.


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## ZachGranstrom (Mar 11, 2010)

Wow.... great time to go shopping. ( Don't have to worry about the crowds)


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

ZachGranstrom said:


> Wow.... great time to go shopping. ( Don't have to worry about the crowds)


If you really like shopping without the crowds there is always the New South China Mall.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_South_China_Mall

The mall they built in the wrong city.


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## ZachGranstrom (Mar 11, 2010)

^^^^
"99% vacant since 2005"

Hmmmm..... Time to go to China.


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## Howard (Dec 7, 2004)

Wow,that mall is pretty empty,wonder why they don't get many customers?


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

Howard said:


> Wow,that mall is pretty empty,wonder why they don't get many customers?


From what I can tell, they built it in the wrong part of town. People around here are rather poor and don't go shopping in flashy expensive malls, they shop at the village markets where things are much cheaper. Less than half of the shops are currently let. Also public transport around here is not that good, so it can be difficult to get to for people living in other parts of Hangzhou, and surrounding areas. There is about a 1KM walk to the nearest bus stop from this mall.

It appears to be a common problem here, as with the previously mentioned New South China Mall. The planning went wrong big time with that one. Dongguan is a rather poor city, most residents are low-paid migrant factory workers, again not the sort of people who shop in expensive malls. A mall of that size would have been much better placed in Guangzhou, or even Beijing, Shanghai or Hong Kong.


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## andy b. (Mar 18, 2010)

So who does this planning? I'm no mall planner, but even I could predict a somewhat successful location for a new shopping mall. Perhaps I need to move to China for a year or two and offer my services. Heck, they could put me on retainer for one year to answer as many mall questions as they can come up with and I'll only charge $1 million. 

Andy B.


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## MikeDT (Aug 22, 2009)

andy b. said:


> So who does this planning? I'm no mall planner, but even I could predict a somewhat successful location for a new shopping mall. Perhaps I need to move to China for a year or two and offer my services. Heck, they could put me on retainer for one year to answer as many mall questions as they can come up with and I'll only charge $1 million.
> 
> Andy B.


Maybe it's the same planners they use in the USA? https://deadmalls.com/


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## Howard (Dec 7, 2004)

MikeDT said:


> From what I can tell, they built it in the wrong part of town. People around here are rather poor and don't go shopping in flashy expensive malls, they shop at the village markets where things are much cheaper. Less than half of the shops are currently let. Also public transport around here is not that good, so it can be difficult to get to for people living in other parts of Hangzhou, and surrounding areas. There is about a 1KM walk to the nearest bus stop from this mall.
> 
> It appears to be a common problem here, as with the previously mentioned New South China Mall. The planning went wrong big time with that one. Dongguan is a rather poor city, most residents are low-paid migrant factory workers, again not the sort of people who shop in expensive malls. A mall of that size would have been much better placed in Guangzhou, or even Beijing, Shanghai or Hong Kong.


They should all go to Flushing Queens where the malls are busy all day.


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## andy b. (Mar 18, 2010)

MikeDT said:


> Maybe it's the same planners they use in the USA? https://deadmalls.com/


Oh brother. I have been to a bunch of the malls listed on that site. Yes, they are dead. I guess those mall site selectors now have jobs in China. 

Andy B.


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## Kurt N (Feb 11, 2009)

^ OK, but to be fair, most of those are malls that once did at least fair-to-middling business but fell victim to changing community demographics--correct? Whereas both of the China malls mentioned here appear to be essentially empty although quite new, and the causes were easily foreseen. I'm assuming it's the usual thing about a government planning bureaucracy where nobody has both enough at stake and enough influence to make sure the planning goes right.


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