Now they have a chance to reinvent themselves.<\/p>\n
COVID-19 has crushed pretty much every retail category, nowhere more so than in malls. Clothing sales alone were down roughly 50% in the early weeks of the crisis.<\/p>\n
In the U.S., Green Street Advisors predicts more than half of department stores in malls will close by the end of 2021. Coresight Research expects upwards of 25,000 stores in the U.S. to close this year \u2013 60% of them in malls.<\/p>\n
Cadillac Fairview has launched a new program called Ravel to counter the unravelling of malls. The digital platform is not just one-way information about sales or locations; it’s a blended model to allow shoppers to see styles and colours that may not be in stock, and to compare items across stores. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s a virtual mall in your pocket,” says Jose Ribau, Cadillac Fairview’s Executive Vice President of Digital & Innovation. Ribau joined the RBC Disruptors podcast to discuss how the world of retail is shifting.<\/p>\n