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Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by anthk on Thursday January 11, 2024 @05:11AM (#38950177)
WTF are you talking about? Your crime rate it's far warse than European metrics. Add shootings on top and that's a nightmare.

On Wallmarts and such, don't make me laugh. Ever heard of Carrefour? Lidl/Aldi? Eroski? Mercadona? Just a few names in Spain. Big hypermarkets outside the town/city.

We also have American shaped malls, too, but they are often placed in the middle of a city.

Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by A_D_E_P_T on Thursday January 11, 2024 @05:16AM (#38950224)
You misunderstood. I mentioned that American crime rates are higher than in Europe, and that this might be part of the problem.

And you've never been to a WalMart or Target if you think that something like Lidl is remotely comparable. Offhand, I'd say that the American versions of those stores are anywhere from 3-20x larger, and I'm not at all exaggerating.

Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by anthk on Thursday January 11, 2024 @06:32AM (#38950847)
Not LIDL or ALDI, ok, but Carrefour isn't that small, not even close. Or Max Center, from Eroski.
Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by Turing_Machine on Thursday January 11, 2024 @11:14AM (#38954182)
According to what I'm seeing on the web, Carrefour stores range between 5,000 sqm to 15,000 sqm (55,000 sqft to 165,000 sq ft), while a Walmart Supercenter is around 260,000 sq ft (1.5 times to 4.7 times larger).
Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by kcplate on Thursday January 11, 2024 @11:23AM (#38954347)
I feel like this is an assumption made by folks outside the US that possibility of crime factors into every decision we make. Perhaps in some areas (SF Bay Area, Chicago, LA, NYC) it’s more top of mind, but I never think about it and frankly the only crime against me I have ever encountered was when I traveled outside the US.
Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by Broken_Hippo on Thursday January 11, 2024 @06:43AM (#38950947)
There is Aldi in the US. Trust me when I say that it isn't comparable to Wal-mart.

Walmart is more like a bunch of stores. You can buy car tires, clothing, food, a playstation, vitamins, diapers, curtains, house paint, alcohol, tobacco, a gun, a coffee pot, a mop and a sewing machine in one stop.

Now, I understand that I'm in Norway, an immigrant, and haven't been all over europe, but I've not seen such a place that sells such a variety under one roof and one brand name.

And about the crime rates: Malls in the US started their downturn years ago. It wasn't the crime rate - I suspect it is just the assortment of stores and location and the increase in online shopping. Unlike here, I'm not usually going to find a grocery store in a US mall - traditionally, they didn't tend to sell practical items at malls. It generally isn't going to be convenient. And ordering online probably is cheaper, considering the travel time and stuff.

Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by rsynnott on Thursday January 11, 2024 @08:23AM (#38951873)
> There is Aldi in the US. Trust me when I say that it isn't comparable to Wal-mart.

While they may not exist in the US, I think Aldi does have 'hypermarkets' (ie Walmart-type things) in some countries. Other brands certainly do, and would cover most of that stuff (though, well, not guns).

Re:The Life and Death of the American Mall by anthk on Thursday January 11, 2024 @06:52AM (#38951038)
Big Carrefour stores being placed a km away from any town/city? Because they work in the same exact way say as the biggie hypermarket complex I can go from where I live in just 10 minutes.

That hypermarket (not Carrefour, another one) it's composed of several buildings, they even have a renewed VR arcade gaming place and several cinema rooms.

You can buy books, computers, clothes, groceries, tyres, courtains, tools, whatever.