4 ms·

The malls in Japan and Thailand are booming. There are a ton of crowds, they have plenty in stock, there are dozens of restaurants that keep people in. You can

by cwnyth 2mo ago

The malls in Japan and Thailand are booming. There are a ton of crowds, they have plenty in stock, there are dozens of restaurants that keep people in. You can also do delivery in those places. I think a lot of places in the west, but America especially, convinced themselves their poorly run physical stores, owned and nigh operated by venture capitalists, is an indicator that people don't need them anymore. The world has shown that that is clearly not the case.

Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
There are cultural differences in attitudes toward workmanship in places like Japan. Indeed, the Mitutoyo factory products have an excellent reputation even in North America (assuming you find a legitimate source.) North American business culture has changed, and will likely continue to degenerate with disconnected trust-fund kids running things. =3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE75WvOtcu8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE75WvOtcu8
- dgellow 2mo ago
  Malls in Berlin and Hamburg are also pretty crowded, fwiw
  - walrus01 2mo ago
    Certain malls in North American cities with dense urban populations and good transit links are also very busy. For instance Metrotown in the centre of Burnaby, BC. I'd guess it has a <2% store vacancy rate. It's very busy. It's also very well connected to the light rail train line, and is centrally located in a fast growing city. It's pretty much the opposite of your typical suburban USA ghost mall. https://www.metropolisatmetrotown.com/directory/ https://www.metropolisatmetrotown.com/directory/
    - Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
      The GVRD has some of the most expensive real-estate in the world, and a lot of other external factors driving business decisions. The high lease churn-rate is also part of the problem, as commercial businesses have zero legal protection from extortionary rate increases. There is also a large southeast asian population in that part of the city. Lots of nail salons, bubble tea shops, and cheap import products. With a Crystal Mall across the street, and no paying customers walking around. =3
      - cwnyth 2mo ago
        Well, I think you have your answer. I happen to agree with that answer: extortionary rates are killing American businesses. In the words of Jimmy McMillan, "The rent is too damn high!"
        Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
        Keep in mind in the GVRD some real-estate holding companies are still leveraged over 17:1 debt:assets, 57% of inhabitants are poor renters, and over 17% of private mortgages are in negative amortization. I wouldn't touch the place with a 10' pole, or any other assistive technology. =3
  - Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
    In is very common to see classic German brands traditionally trusted for precision/quality parts, to be purchased by China based traders. It should be illegal, but it is no longer technically counterfeit product. Should have seen the puzzled sour face I made when replacement "New German" cross-roller linear optical-slides were bouncing 8x out of spec compared to a 40 year old part they were supposed to fix. lol =3

by cwnyth 2mo ago

Joel_Mckay 2mo ago

There are cultural differences in attitudes toward workmanship in places like Japan. Indeed, the Mitutoyo factory products have an excellent reputation even in North America (assuming you find a legitimate source.) North American business culture has changed, and will likely continue to degenerate with disconnected trust-fund kids running things. =3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE75WvOtcu8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE75WvOtcu8

dgellow 2mo ago
Malls in Berlin and Hamburg are also pretty crowded, fwiw
- walrus01 2mo ago
  Certain malls in North American cities with dense urban populations and good transit links are also very busy. For instance Metrotown in the centre of Burnaby, BC. I'd guess it has a <2% store vacancy rate. It's very busy. It's also very well connected to the light rail train line, and is centrally located in a fast growing city. It's pretty much the opposite of your typical suburban USA ghost mall. https://www.metropolisatmetrotown.com/directory/ https://www.metropolisatmetrotown.com/directory/
  - Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
    The GVRD has some of the most expensive real-estate in the world, and a lot of other external factors driving business decisions. The high lease churn-rate is also part of the problem, as commercial businesses have zero legal protection from extortionary rate increases. There is also a large southeast asian population in that part of the city. Lots of nail salons, bubble tea shops, and cheap import products. With a Crystal Mall across the street, and no paying customers walking around. =3
    - cwnyth 2mo ago
      Well, I think you have your answer. I happen to agree with that answer: extortionary rates are killing American businesses. In the words of Jimmy McMillan, "The rent is too damn high!"
      - Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
        Keep in mind in the GVRD some real-estate holding companies are still leveraged over 17:1 debt:assets, 57% of inhabitants are poor renters, and over 17% of private mortgages are in negative amortization. I wouldn't touch the place with a 10' pole, or any other assistive technology. =3
- Joel_Mckay 2mo ago
  In is very common to see classic German brands traditionally trusted for precision/quality parts, to be purchased by China based traders. It should be illegal, but it is no longer technically counterfeit product. Should have seen the puzzled sour face I made when replacement "New German" cross-roller linear optical-slides were bouncing 8x out of spec compared to a 40 year old part they were supposed to fix. lol =3