Shopping malls

For decades one of very popular marketplaces has been shopping mall. It is a complex of different shops that are located in one or more buildings and are connected with walkways that allow customers to move easily from one unit to another one. Shopping centers allow to make a purchase to every person with different budgets and preferences. One of the closest shopping centers to Philadelphia is Franklin Mills Mall that contains great variety of stores such as Guess, Kenneth Cole, Macy’s and Old Navy. Malls have not just stores but also different kinds of entertainment that attracts many customers of different age range. The largest shopping center in the USA Mall of America consists of three levels of shopping and the fourth level that is dedicated for fun and food. The video below gives certain understanding about some kinds of attractions that have become available for customers of Mall of America. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nG-4ttb5c0c&feature=related These attractions could be built in the mall due to the scientific progress and the technological evolution.
Many shopping malls are placed in suburban areas because of a large area they occupy. For example, the biggest mall in the world is South China Mall situated in China with gross floor area of 892,000 m2 (9,600,000 sq ft). In spite of this, sometimes, shopping centers are built in cities because of their better accessibility. High land prices led to the development of a new tendency in the mall constriction. In populous cities appeared "vertical malls" that instead of taking up immense areas, they have many floors. These malls have a lot of escalators and alleviators that allow customers to move between floors easily. One of the examples of this kind of malls is “Times Square” in Hong Kong. The picture below is a good representation of a “vertical mall”.
Many shopping malls are busy across the world. For example, Mall of America receives around 40 million visitors a year. A lot of people go to malls and spend hours there enjoying shopping and great food and have fun. Thus, shopping centers have changed people’s opinions about shopping centers. Many humans stopped to believe that shopping malls exist only for make a purchase; they are also great places for entertainment.