
The fanciest shopping center in America is expanding - lnguyen
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-02-08/this-mall-is-only-for-the-rich-and-it-s-doing-fine
======
twblalock
I'm not surprised that high-end retail is still doing fine. People want the
luxury purchasing experience to be luxurious -- they'd rather buy their luxury
goods in boutiques than get them delivered in a cardboard box from Amazon.

Part of that may simply be wariness about spending a lot of money on stuff
that's going to be shipped and could be lost, but that's not all. Owning the
luxury goods themselves is only part of the experience -- being treated well
during the purchase and during future customer service interactions is a big
part of the draw of luxury items. You don't get that from most online
retailers.

~~~
GeneralMayhem
I think the bigger part is that a lot of luxury goods are very hard to select
without seeing them in person. Clothes are an obvious one, since you wouldn't
want to buy them without trying them on (and, at the higher end, getting them
tailored). But the same goes for all sorts of fashion products - leather,
handbags, jewelry... you don't know whether it's what you want until you can
try it on, feel the material, and see the true color.

~~~
ijidak
And the fear of counterfeit. Buy a $100 handbag and maybe it's counterfeit, oh
well. Buy a $2,000 handbag and maybe it's counterfeit, unacceptable.

Except for dedicated online outlets delivered by the luxury brand itself,
which luxury brands are no doubt loathe to do (e.g. why cannibalize my own
stores, when no other company distributes my brand anyway), I doubt people
would ever buy specific high-end brands they covet online without some serious
guarantees of authenticity. But again as a high end exclusive brand, why do I
want to make it easier to buy my exclusive goods online?

------
peterwwillis
I saw the title and I thought, "Bal Harbor Shops is expanding?" Yep.

This article leaves out one of the more bizarre parts of Bal Harbor to me. As
you drive around, you mainly notice three things: really expensive shops,
super-expensive cars, and families of Orthodox Jews.

When I lived in South Florida, somebody once explained to me that the orthodox
Jews lived in a different area nearby until they were pushed into North Miami
Beach. Around the mid-1980s, they successfully sued the local government to
remove racist laws preventing black and Jewish people from moving into the
neighborhood (though it would appear something prevented any black people from
moving in). The Sephardic Jewish population in this absolutely tiny, super-
rich "village" between Miami Bay and the Atlantic Ocean is growing so much,
they just spent $20 Million to expand their one shul. The power of the local
orthodox Jewish population is such that they recently passed a local ordinance
to include "criticism of Israel" as a potential hate crime.

It's hard for me to not sound really racist while describing this, but it
really is strange to go through the entirety of Miami/Dade and nearby counties
and cities, which is basically mostly full of caribbean and latino people, and
then hit this super-rich exclusive pocket of real estate, which just happens
to be super Orthodox and European. It's just weird. (The only other area
nearby that I know of that has a similar population is Hollywood, Florida,
though I have no idea why)

------
phnofive
If nothing else, don’t miss the mini management game:

[https://www.bloomberg.com/features/american-mall-
game/](https://www.bloomberg.com/features/american-mall-game/)

I’m always happy to see these kinds of games accompany articles as a different
way of communicating the message (like the one for driving a rideshare).

~~~
2sk21
This was really fascinating. This game just confirmed the patterns that I have
seen in declining Malls

------
martingordon
I grew up five minutes from Bal Harbour Shops and thought it was a pretty
terrible mall all throughout my childhood since it had no arcade, KB Toys, or
Electronics Boutique.

It’s pretty amazing how it and Aventura Mall continue to grow. I guess Latin
America hasn’t gotten the message that retail is dead (in reality, a flight to
Miami and an empty suitcase is a bargain compared to the prices folks see at
home).

~~~
mpetrovich
I used to live in Surfside, which is right next door to the Bal Harbour Shops.
Hard to tell from photos, but the mall is TINY.

Also, the foot traffic is really light. Most people seem to hang out at the
few cafés or restaurants. But I suppose with prices like that, they need a lot
less traffic to pay rent.

~~~
themark
You mentioned them hanging out at restaurants. I think malls are reinventing
themselves into destinations for high end cuisine more than retail. This is a
place where people go to see and be seen, no better place for that than a
bar/restaurant.

~~~
goshx
I agree with you. I’ve been to Bal Harbour Shops multiple times to eat and
hangout at Carpaccio. I’ve never purchased anything from the stores. I see
other malls in Miami bulding new restaurants.

------
acheron
Since the title doesn't tell you, it's about Bal Harbour Shops in Miami Beach,
though others are name-checked too.

------
baus
I think malls in FL in general are doing ok because of the tourists from Latin
America. This is just an anecdotal observation, but The Florida Mall in
Orlando is always filled with Brazilian and other Latin American tourists
looking to find a deal in the US

~~~
goshx
Yes, spanish and portuguese is all you hear when walking through the malls in
South Florida.

------
Animats
Check out the Stanford mall. Sign at food store: "Champagne and caviar - enjoy
them tonight". Or, as I once overheard from a female freshman, "Did you know
this place has a totally awesome mall?"

------
indescions_2018
Bal Harbour is chic no question. With excellent people (and autos) watching ;)

But the "vias" in Palm Beach off of Worth Avenue are much more charming. And
the conversation much more stimulating!

------
flyGuyOnTheSly
High end malls in the GTA are the only ones expanding currently as well.
Yorkdale and Square One are pretty much complete with their massive new
buildouts.

------
loopdoend
The Bal Harbour shops are honestly done.

Miami Design District has __literally __transformed Miami into the __Mecca
__of fashion shopping.

Anyone who has their things in a twist about Bal Harbour after __all these
years __has some kind of old beef or something going on. S@BH are already
over. Miami Design District has put a total end to Bal Harbour. It has no
hope.

Take a trip to Miami, go to NE 40th and NE 1st and then let me know about how
great Bal Harbour is. It's over.

~~~
cylinder
Your writing is confusing. Your first sentence should have been structured as
such:

The Bal Harbour shops are honestly done for.

or,

Honestly, the Bal Harbour shops are done.

~~~
loopdoend
Honestly, you're right.

------
aj7
The money the 5% have is expanding.

~~~
CodeWriter23
Not as fast a the money of the 0.5%.

