What I like about the Escondido mall is that unlike many other malls, they didn’t go upscale.
UTC, One Paseo, etc all filled their malls up with these high end stores that might be interesting to window shop but rarely buy. Maybe that’s why Tiffany’s is looking for a buyer. I think about 1/2 of the stores in the UTC mall will end up closing by next year.
Meanwhile, stores like Hot Topic , Game Stop had pretty decent lines wrapped outside the store in the Escondido mall. I don’t understand how really young people have the money to be carrying around $1200 iPhone 11s, and spending spending spending, but hey that’s not my problem. I am just observing.
Dollar stores make a shitload of money. Boutique stores you find in One Paseo, Highland Village in Carmel Valley go under all the time. And yet you won’t ever find a dollar store in Carmel Valley. So there you go.
Game Stop closed in Carmel Valley but looks to be kicking in Escondido, and the reason is pretty clear. Carmel Valley retail rent is ridiculously expensive and is filled with rich spoiled brats, and so they always have/want the latest and greatest games, consoles,etc. So kids in Carmel Valley probably don’t buy second hand games, gaming consoles , etc, because they are spoiled brats… kids in Escondido have no problem buying games second hand in Escondido and if Game Stop can sell a 2017 game at $9.99 buy one get one free, you’ll have a long line….
I bought Just Dance 2018 and 2017 for $9.99 buy one get one free for my Wii, lol. Great entertainment when your friends are buzzed.
Another store that seems to be doing well… Miniso. For those that don’t know, it’s basically an asian dollar store chain. The name sounds Japanese and they sell a lot of cutsie Japanese looking items like plushies and household items really cheap…But there’s nothing japanese about this store… The chinese have figured out if you brand a store to make it look japanese, and sell things cheap, american consumers will spend a shitload of money, more so than if you tried to create a store with a clearly chinese name.
It’s a straight up playbook taken from why many chinese people rather open a sushi restaurant these days than a chinese food restaurant. Americans expect chinese food to be cheap, but pay an arm and a leg for sushi. Even if the sushi is really made by the same chinese chefs that would have made the cheap chinese food. Most sushi places in San Diego are either Chinese or Korean owned, so there you go. And it’s funny that some Japanese retailers are ripping at Miniso because they are “copying Japanese”. Well shit, when the japanese started out, they were copying and ripping off of American companies. Karma’s certainly a bitch.
That’s where Huawei failed. They should have entered the US market under a japanese sounding brand name.
Retailers like Macy’s are fvcked. Because they haven’t figured out how to sell to this new younger buyer group. Have you stepped inside a Macy’s lately? Merchandise just looks like crap, imho.
