Anchor stores attract consumers to shopping malls, with smaller stores surrounding them. The concept predates malls and was expanded in the 1940s and 1950s. The departure of anchor tenants can lead to a mall’s decline and eventual closure.
Anchor stores are department stores that are used to provide a major point of interest for a shopping mall. Sometimes referred to as a mining lessee or key lessee, it is usually a well-known chain store that is popular with consumers. The presence of this type of store can entice consumers to visit the mall or mall and continue shopping at the smaller stores in the complex.
The idea of an anchor shop predates the establishment of shopping malls in the mid-20th century. Before that, the mall concept usually included a key store or tenant that could attract consumers to visit the mall. The expectation was that the smaller shops surrounding it would sell goods and services that were free of charge, but not in competition with, the goods and services offered by the larger shop. As a result, consumers could eventually complete their purchases without having to spend hours traveling from one part of the city to another.
With the advent of the mall in the 1940s and 1950s, the idea and its value for a mall was expanded. Instead of including an anchor in the venue, malls started being built with as few as two anchor stores. With an anchor conductor at each end of the mall, smaller retailers would occupy storefronts that connected the two together. A shopper can enter the mall at one, then shop at the smaller stores on their way to the other main store at the opposite end of the mall.
The departure of key tenants is often the first sign of a mall’s decline. Without larger stores to help maintain consumer interest, smaller stores typically begin looking for retail space in other malls or centers as soon as possible. Once the anchors and most of the small retail stores have left the facility, it is usually referred to as a dead mall.
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