When it comes to shopping, there are two terms that are often used interchangeably: shopping malls and shopping centers. While they may seem like the same thing, there is actually a slight difference between the two. A shopping mall is a large enclosed space that contains many stores that sell merchandise to the public. However, a shopping mall doesn't necessarily have to be an enclosed space; it can be a shopping mall, a shopping mall, or a pedestrian street.
Therefore, a mall is just one type of mall. On the other hand, a shopping center is a collection of independent retail stores, services and a parking area conceived, built and maintained by a management company as a unit. Shopping centers are usually smaller than malls and often focus on a supermarket, accompanied by daily convenience stores such as a drugstore, shoe store, laundry and dry cleaning. The International Council on Shopping Centers has ranked shopping centers in the U.
S. Department of State in eight divisions. The movement of pedestrians and vehicles within the center is one of the main design considerations and should be kept physically separate as much as possible. The size and reach of the center, the type of tenant and the economy of the area partly determine the parking needs, but it has been found that a ratio of 5.5 parking spaces per 1000 square feet of leasable space is generally adequate.
The regional mall offers a full range of shopping services comparable to those found in a small central business district. The economic conditions of the area, the sociology of the region, and local competition and business attitudes determine the size of the center that can receive support and the type of stores acceptable for a given location. In conclusion, both shopping malls and shopping centers refer to large spaces that allow people to access more than one store. However, there is an important distinction between them that should be noted.
Shopping malls are large enclosed spaces that contain many stores that sell merchandise to the public while shopping centers are collections of independent retail stores, services and parking areas maintained by management companies.
