Ciarra Jones has a bachelor's degree from UC Berkeley in American Studies and a Master’s degree in Theology from Havard University. She's a seasoned journalist and researcher with experience covering finance, climate change, religion, and racial justice. Her bylines include but are not limited to NerdWallet, Yahoo Finance, Huffington Post, and Elite Daily.

Experience Hunters

People expect products and services that feel made for them

Personal Worlds

Taylor J. Kovar is a certified financial planner, the CEO of The Money Couple, and the CEO of Kovar Wealth Management. In 2022, Taylor was named one of Investopedia’s top 100 financial advisors.

Jeanel Alvarado is the founder and CEO of RETAILBOSS. With 15 years of experience in the retail industry, including expertise in marketing, operations, merchandising, buying, shopping, and technology, Jeanel has worked on retail consulting projects for major retailers, independent brands, shopping centers, and real estate companies, giving her vast insight into retail.

United States

Shopping

Business Insider

Forbes

National Retail Foundation

Variety

Time

Interview with Taylor Kovar conducted by the author

Interview with Jeanel Alvarado conducted by the author

TechCrunch

MSNBC

Retail Dive

CNBC

Deloitte

RetailWire

IBISWorld

Shopify

2023 Unified Commerce Benchmark

AIthority

From offering spaces for decompression to creating adventurous indoor experiences, malls are far from dead. But what is the future of the American mall? And how can retailers build brick-and-mortar environments that accommodate the vast and shifting expectations of modern shoppers?

Cultivate

Experiences and Sensations

Who’s going to the mall?