Today the expression “retail apocalypse” It may sound like science fiction to us, but there was a time (not so long ago) in which it seemed a sentence imminent for traditional commerce. His logic was very simple: if people could buy whatever they wanted from whoever they wanted and from wherever they wanted with a ‘click’, why would they go to traditional shopping areas, with the costs that that entails? time has shown that neither e-commerce Neither COVID-19 has taken away our pleasure in going to shopping centers, but that does not mean that they do not seek to reinvent themselves.
And in this attempt two clear strategies can be seen: gradually becoming ‘urban theme parks’ and spaces that pamper luxury and exclusivity.
New times, new models. Today the ghost of “retail apocalypse” seems scared away (in reality the phenomenon always was more linked to the US than Spain, where the market is less saturated), but that does not mean that the shopping centers of 2026 can continue living with the model that popularized them 30, 20 or 10 years ago. After all, if we can buy anything on AliExpress or Amazon, why go to the nearest shopping center?
If we can watch movies on Prime or Netflix, why are we going to take the car, eat a traffic jam and then fight in the parking lot to go to the movies?
Who goes to the mall? The million dollar question. The sector has studies that detail the user profile who go to their centers: how much time they spend there, where they move from, the weight of foreigners, how far their “area of influence” extends… A wide range of data in which one in particular stands out: customers spend more time where, in addition to food, clothing, appliances or any other merchandise, they offer us experiences.
Beyond customer loyalty to their reference shopping center or the proximity factor, users seem particularly willing to spend time in the so-called “experience centers”those that have a differentiated offer and are sold as places to “live experiences.”
With the watch in your hand. The above may sound like theory, but it is perfectly measured. a study published in 2024 by CBRE shows that, although we spend an average of 56 minutes in shopping centers in general, when we talk about “experience” areas, that figure shoots up to 71 or even 100. Double the time we invest in “convenience centers”, those that basically rely on supermarkets and focus on food.
The report It also detected that the “Family&Fun” centers, aimed primarily at families, have a higher customer loyalty rate than the rest of the facilities. They are no longer just warehouses in which to shop or have a drink, they are living spaces where we make memories.
What does that mean? That people no longer only go to shopping centers to buy some shoes, watch TV for the living room or fill the refrigerator. We can do this through other channels, even without leaving home, with our mobile phone. What we are looking for is the differentiating factor, an experience or a plus that compensates for traveling to the venue. It’s worth the effort for us. It allows the centers to retain their attractiveness as spaces in which to “have a good time” with friends or family, the value that made them popular in the 20th century.
“More and more customers are looking for experiences and entertainment in shopping centers. Many are integrating experiences into retail to attract more users,” explained already in 2021 a manager of the La Vaguada Shopping Center. He is not the only one who thinks this way. In 2024 Diego Ramos published on LinkedIn a column who came to a similar conclusion: merchandise is no longer enough for us, now we want experiences, “socializing, having fun, creating memories.”
Changing the anchor. In his opinion, entertainment parks have become “the new anchor” of shopping centers. If before these venues boasted the presence of large chains (Fnac, Mediamarkt, Ikea) as their star dish, today they advertise other hooks: surf pools or diving, zip lines, climbing walls, skateparks, ice rinks, wind tunnels, escape rooms…
“Visitors expect to live experiences, it is not enough for them to just buy, that is why they have the digital market,” they comment from Caleido to elEconomista. It is the same philosophy that once led shopping centers to go from having little more than hypermarkets to including cinemas and bowling alleys… only multiplied by a thousand.
Theme parks and luxury. The result is a kind of urban theme parks of which examples abound, both of complexes in progress and of others planned: X Madrid, Oasiz (Madrid), Breogán Park (A Coruña), Infinity Valencia either Nasas Madridto name a few. Other commercial spaces also opt for another way of offering a plus to the user: exclusivity, luxury.
This is the case, for example, of LaFinca Grand Caféwhich is advertised as a space with “premium services” and “haute cuisine”, or McArthurGlen Designer Outelt Málagawhich opened its doors several years ago with premium brands.
The bet on exclusivity it’s not new either (it is nothing that has not been seen in spaces such as Las Roazas Village, La Roca Village, L’illa Diagonal or Galerías Canalejas), but it also helps some shopping centers to find their differentiated place. Not only that. It also allows them to make it easier for them when it comes to capturing a certain customer profile, visitors who come to Spain to practice “shopping tourism”a profile in which Americans and Chinese stand out.
The sword of Damocles. It may seem like an unimportant issue, but getting the strategy right is key in a sector that is undergoing transformation and increasingly competitive. Shopping centers may not have survived the “retail apocalypse” and continue to attract thousands of users (their employers estimate that during the first half of 2025 their sales increased by 6% and customer traffic by 3.4%), but success is not guaranteed. Not at all.
That even the most ambitious bets can slip has been reminded by Oasiz, the largest shopping center in all of Madrid and which has been forced to enter contest of creditors. At the end of the day they move billions of eurosbut they also require large investments, larger the more they need to invest in a differentiated leisure offer (wave pools, ski slopes, huge zip lines, escape rooms…) or attract exclusive brands.
Images | Merlin Properties, LaFinca Gran Café and Jorge Franganillo (Flickr)
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