"Great minds think alike but fools rarely differ", says the old adage. As we read a CNN article titled “The American shopping mall is being reinvented”, we have a reason to agree with this statement.

Published on February 15, it agrees in all substantial conclusions with Ticon’s posts of January 16 and 17, dedicated to the present and the future of the shopping malls.

The major conclusions made by both parties include:

- Classic shopping centers are being replaced by mixed-use models, combining retail, residential housing, restaurants, entertainment, and sometimes – medical services.

- The moving force of this revival is the younger consumers, primarily Gen Z-ers, looking for “fun” experience.

- The challenges facing the developers of the novel “hub” style malls have to do with demographics – including the pushback from the local community.

What CNN brought to the conversation is the promise of a new community, created by “walkable, urban-esque living, with amenities at the doorstep” – a place where “you can get rid of cars altogether and make it a place for walking, biking and public transit”.

In our opinion, any development that brings the denizens closer together and restores the sense of community, is a good thing. Regardless of the modes of transportation. Boomers escaping into suburbia lost that sense of community. If Gen Z will rebuild it in this new shape, three cheers to Gen Z!.

As to the demographic challenges, the developers may consider checking out the article recently published by researchers from Ticon in collaboration with their partner company Map AI: ”Reevaluating Trade Area Analysis with Accurate Traffic and Highly Granular Demographics Data”. Despite the long name, the article is far from boring, and can provide refreshing thoughts to commercial real estate developers exploring – in particular – mixed-use “live, work, play” development model.