Quite a few chains that have been as soon as mall staples, together with Eternally 21, JCPenney, and Claire’s, have skilled bankruptcies and closures over the previous couple of years, considerably impacting mall-tenant dynamics.
Surprisingly, many landlords welcomed this as excellent news reasonably than a problem. They’re specializing in bringing in stronger, extra worthwhile tenants that may pay larger rents and entice present shopper demographics, in response to the Wall Road Journal.
Landlords are eyeing a number of smaller retailers or leisure/eating choices that might generate larger gross sales per sq. foot.
“You can’t blame declining foot traffic for pushing many mall retailers to close stores,” defined retail knowledgeable and TheStreet Co-Editor-in-Chief Daniel Kline.
In October 2025, the foot site visitors to indoor malls and open-air buying facilities grew considerably each 12 months over 12 months and month over month, in response to information from Placer.ai.
Placer.ai information, nevertheless, measures foot site visitors and never purchases. Additional, mall values are nonetheless far beneath the height of 2016, and chain retailer closures depart vacancies which can be onerous to fill, particularly for second-tier malls.
“And hundreds of low-end malls across the U.S. have either closed or are slowly dying,” experiences Kate King for the Wall Road Journal.
In accordance with Coresight Analysis, malls are usually divided into tiers:
- High-tier malls: Prosperous areas, luxurious and new digital-native manufacturers, and an annual resident earnings of over $200,000
- Mid-tier malls: Strong anchor presence, fewer vacancies, and an annual resident earnings of round $100,000
- Low-tier malls: Challenges with vacancies and foot site visitors
Whereas top-tier malls are thriving, mid-tier and low-tier malls are struggling. Now, one mid-tier mall has misplaced 4 in style manufacturers.
Banana Republic, Tommy Bahama, Madewell, and Wockenfuss Candies shut shops on the Towson City Middle Mall in Towson, Maryland.
Picture supply: Shutterstock
Tommy Bahama, Banana Republic, and extra shut at Towson City Middle
Banana Republic, Tommy Bahama, Madewell, and Wockenfuss Candies just lately closed or are about to shut their shops on the Towson City Middle Mall in Towson, Maryland (Baltimore County), reported CBS Information.
Tommy Bahama already left the mall, whereas a sequence operated by Hole Inc., Banana Republic, and a retailer run by J. Crew Group, Madewell are anticipated to exit the favored mall over the subsequent few weeks.
Whereas Wockenfuss Candies will not be a nationwide model, it’s the oldest sweet maker in Baltimore, making sweets for greater than a century. It just lately confirmed closure of its location within the Towson City Middle.
“We have enjoyed our years at Towson Town Center. After much consideration, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close this location, effective immediately. We appreciate all of our customers for their support and hope you will visit another of our locations in the future. The closest store to Towson is North Plaza Center (8900 Waltham Woods Road),” Wockenfuss Candies posted on Fb.
In accordance with a Patch report from late December 2025, the Macy’s at Towson City Middle has certainly been focused for a 2026 closure.
The financial system has modified, Nancy Hafford, with the native Chamber of Commerce, informed WMAR-2 Information.
“People don’t have as much expendable funds as they used to a couple years ago. With the cost of goods being so high, they don’t have as much to spend, and Amazon has really hurt a lot of the retail businesses too, so that’s another reason that we’ve had some challenges,” Hafford said.
The retailers’ exit comes as the city is dealing with a virtual ghost town in Towson Square, where many restaurants next to the movie theater have already left.
Hafford added she has talked with the company running the area’s revitalization. “They’re working diligently to draw new companies in. One factor we have present in Towson is individuals’s palates have modified. So they don’t seem to be going to the large nationwide chains as a lot.”
She’s optimistic about Baltimore County Economic Development’s incentive programs to engage new retail businesses in the community.
Consumers also blame closures on growing safety concerns
The mass retail departure is the latest blow to Towson Square, which has been troubled with youth violence in recent years. Last November, a robbery and stabbing at the mall resulted in the arrest of four teens, and a county councilmember urged mall management to “be a stronger partner in maintaining a safe environment,” according to Fox Baltimore.
Although some consumers are blaming the brands’ departures on safety concerns as well as economic challenges, none of the retailers has confirmed or denied that leaving the mall has anything to do with the violent incidents.
“I have been going there for 20 years, so I’ve seen shops come. I see shops go, however due to theft and crime within the mall, it makes it unhealthy. The place can we store now?” shopper Sabrina Pitchford-Gorman told CBS News. “I’ve seen them [teens] seize individuals’s baggage or snatch telephones or interrupt your lunch, in order that makes it uncomfortable to buy.”
Back in October 2025, one man was also charged after allegedly stabbing a woman in the mall’s parking lot.
“I would not go there on my own late at evening or something, however throughout the day I really feel tremendous. I reside proper close by, so I nonetheless like to think about this as a secure place,” mentioned shopper Peggy Tomick.
What the Tommy Bahama and Banana Republic closures imply for shoppers
When main mall anchors depart, it often has a notable impression on foot site visitors.
“Store closures can set off a ‘domino effect’ on local governments and businesses, which come[s] at a significant cost to society. For instance, closures can have a knock-on effect for nearby businesses – when large stores close, the foot traffic to neighboring establishments is also reduced, which endangers the viability of other local businesses,” in response to unbiased tutorial institute IMD.
A 2011 examine of Sonae Sierra, a worldwide retail actual property firm from Portugal, even revealed that “the total sales of the shopping malls are directly influenced by the number of anchors.”
Some Towson City Middle Mall customers are apprehensive concerning the domino impact, and reported listening to that different shops might shut quickly.
Extra Closings
- 91-years-old historic bar is closing completely
- Beloved 120-year-old gardening retailer closes completely
- Finish of an period: Beloved diner shuts after 140 years
“It’s a bummer. I mean, it’s not the greatest mall to begin with, and now losing those stores,” mentioned buyer Tomick.
“[A J Crew employee] said that they raised the rent, which is really unfortunate. I guess it’s not a very prosperous mall, and now with higher rent, it’s going to be hard to keep a lot of the stores around.”
Shopper Sabrina Pitchford-Gorman informed CBS-Information that she thinks “it’s going to be a huge impact financially, as a result of you are going to lose plenty of foot site visitors, so you are going to lose lots of people who go to these shops. It is also going to have an effect on different shops, and, after all, the meals court docket.”
Mall retailers closing shops in 2025
Analyzing 2023 information from Coresight Analysis reveals that malls account for about 5.5% of U.S. retail house, however seize about 12.9% of shopper retail expenditures. This means that malls usually outperform different retail codecs per sq. foot.
Nonetheless, in 2025, various mall staples shut their doorways for varied causes, together with:
- Eternally 21: Entered chapter and is closing all 350 U.S. shops as of 2025.
Supply: The Wall Road Journal - Claire’s: Introduced the closure of 235 Claire’s shops and 56 Icing shops (291 complete) in North America by September 2025, as a part of restructuring.
Supply: TheStreet - Torrid: Planning to shut 40-50 shops, later elevated to 180 closures in 2025 because it shifts towards a extra digital-focused mannequin.
Supply: TheStreet - Macy’s: Set to shut 66 underperforming shops in 2025 as half of a bigger plan (~150 shops by 2026) to shrink its footprint.
Supply: The Road - JCPenney: Introduced the closure of eight shops by mid-2025 because of expiring leases and market circumstances (not a full footprint discount).
- Joann (Joann Materials & Crafts): Closed all 850 shops after a second Chapter 11 chapter submitting.
Supply: PacerMonitor - Dillards: Confirmed the closure of not less than eight shops, citing shifts in retail technique and specializing in extra environment friendly operations.
Supply: TheStreet
The underside line for retail actual property
The mass departure from Towson City Middle is part of a broader image of mid- or B-tier malls throughout the US. Whereas top-tier malls proceed to outperform because of their luxurious choices, mid-tier malls are struggling.
The exit of Banana Republic, Tommy Bahama, Madewell, and Wockenfuss Candies from Towson City Middle doesn’t essentially recommend the dying of the mall, however merely one other problem.
Because the Wall Road Journal prompt, some landlords hope to draw tenants which can be capable of pay larger rents.
The underside line is that landlords ought to herald experiential tenants that may’t get replaced by Amazon. “Compared to lower-tier mall operators, top-tier mall operators have the financial resources to continually reinvest in and renovate malls to inspire consumers and meet evolving demand for experiences,” experiences Coresight Analysis.
One other problem Towson City Middle is going through is native competitors, with the $350 million Towson Row improvement and the brand new Complete Meals, simply blocks away, attracting the world’s pupil {and professional} inhabitants.
May this be a chance for Towson City Middle to rebrand and revitalize? It’s doable, although there’s additionally an actual likelihood that this may very well be one other main blow for the mall.
Associated: 73-year-old furnishings chain shuts shops for good, clients upset
