Seminole Town Center

Seminole Towne Center

"The shotgun mall"

200 Towne Center Cir  Sanford, FL 32771 (407) 323-1843

A simon mall built in 1995, Seminole Town Center is a little over 1,000,000 square feet like several of the other malls in the area. The difference is the shape in which it was built. Walking into the mall from the Dillard's, a person could practically see the Macy's on the other side. It is a straight corridor, like a shotgun house. However, because it was built into an uneven, hilly piece of land, it has a series of little ramps and stairs throughout. This mall is a bit unusual. It is directly off of the highway, serving Sanford (another Orlando subdivision). It is clear from the simplistic interior design and color scheme that it is a product of the 90's, yet it has some random upgrades. One of such is an anchor store that has been replaced by a Burlington Coat Factory on the bottom floor and a completely separate Dick's Sporting Goods on the second floor. There is an unusual mix of generic hiphop fashion stores, an off-brand book and calendar store, a comic book store and a novelty gag gifts and costume store. These all suggest a lower income area. Yet the mall has somehow managed to support a massive H&M store that takes up several store fronts, a fairly large Victoria's Secret with it's own "Pink" mini store attached, a Godiva Chocolate, a Hollister, and a few other brand names as well as the Dick's, that usually are found in slightly more upscale malls. There are also a small collection of boutique stores that have made this mall their "launchpad". One of them, a tropical cruise-wear store based out of NY and LA, only has five stores in the country.  There is also a little wine boutique with a sister store in the Altamonte Mall. 

Who its for: Because of the generously diverse mix of bottom-dollar fashions, middle-range fashions and boutique stores, the mall could suit most anyone from lower to middle income.

Its best assets: Aside from the massive collection of bargain fashions and home decor at Burlington, there is the fine Godiva chocolate and a whole assortment of unique boutiques. The cruise wear boutique, the comic shop, the wine shop, the store with books and calendar gifts, other fashion boutiques and a store that boasts over 100 flavors for the e-cigarette are all specific to this mall and most of them are not found in the other area malls. Because of the wide range of these types of shops, it is a little like going to the shops in downtown St Augustine, only with air conditioning.

Other great retail: Anchors Macy's, Dillard's and half of a Sear's, Zumiez, Tilly's, Express, Buckle and many more.

What it lacks: There is something unique for everyone, especially at boutique shops, but for someone seeking high fashion and designer clothing or accessories, this would not be the ideal mall.

Signs of decline: moderate. There are some shuttered stores, a few of which are fairly large, scattered throughout but mostly concentrated near the anchors. The 90's interior not having been upgraded yet also suggests economic lag or downturn.

Overall Rating: 3/5

http://www.simon.com/mall/seminole-towne-center

The Altamonte Mall

The Altamonte Mall

"Orlando's down-to-earth mall"

451 E Altamonte Dr  Altamonte Springs, FL 32701
(407) 215-5100

This mall serves Altamonte Springs, which is a subdivision of Orlando. It was opened in 1974, but has been renovated
twice since then. It hosts four anchors and about 160 stores. There is also a large movie theater on the premises.

Who its for: Though surrounded by shopping centers, It appears to be a sort of one-stop-shop for the residents of Altamonte, making it seem very down-to-earth compared to its upscale tourist-luring cousins. The Altamonte Police have an office in the mall, as well as a dentist and a few salons. As far as the retail shopping experience, the stores appeal mostly to the middle class shopper. Like most of the other middle class neighborhood malls, there is something for teens, families and professionals. 

Its best assets: Barnes and Noble, build a bear workshop, H&M, Ulta beauty and more

Other great retail: Abercrombie and Fitch, Express, White House Black Market, Zumiez, Teavanna and many more

What it lacks: This mall has almost everything, though there are not many of the high fashion stores like the ones at Millennia. 

Signs of decline: Minimal- a dozen or so shuttered stores on the premises. I visited the mall on a Tuesday afternoon but it was still fairly busy.

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

http://www.altamontemall.com

The Mall At Millennia

The Mall At Millennia

"The state-of-the-art beauty"

4200 Conroy Rd  Orlando, FL 32839(407) 363-3555Only open since 2002, the Mall At Millenia easily takes the title of "most upscale mall".  It features cutting edge interior designand many high fashion designer stores in a little over 1,100,000 square feet. It is a two-story mall but the anchor stores are triple-deckers. It is not near the airport, but is right off Interstate 4, between the Disney area and the downtown part of Orlando. It serves as both a tourist attraction and a shopping experience tailored for the affluent customers. This little piece of economy developed in reverse: instead of the mall being opened in a select area, it was built on a wide-open lot of land as a free standing structure, and later the other shopping centers, condos, car dealerships and  business office parks were created around it.  Who its for: Millennia offers some stores for the middle class shoppers, such as Forever XXI, Gap and Tommy Bahama, but most of its stores are designer and  based out of London, Paris or Italy. Two of its three anchors are higher end. Over all, it is best suited for a high income professional or family, and the population of  Europe-based designers would certainly appeal to certain international guests. Most of the restaurants attached to the mall are also a little more upscale, such as the Cheesecake Factory. Its best assets: The first thing a visitor of this mall might notice is that there are no kiosks. A shopper can stroll at a leisurely pace in peace, without the salesmen jumping into their path and trying to take them to see their patented merchandise. Because of the cutting edge design, the mall has some decoratively unique features, one in particular being that the floors in the center areas are all giant mosaic sundials. Based on where the sun is shining from the very large skylights, the dial indicates the month and day. By the mall offices is a full-service post office and foreign currency exchange. For the higher income shopper, there are stores here that are not in the other area malls- such as  Chanel, Guicci, Salvatore Ferragamo, Emporio Armani and several others. Even though it is meant to be an upscale mall, it still has a full service food court featuring such standards as  Chick-fil-a, Sbarro and haagen daas (among others). Other great retail: Anchors Bloomingdales, Macy's and Neiman Marcus; Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, Crate and Barrel, Pottery Barn, Express, Victoria's Secret, Billabong, True Religion Jeans and many more. What it lacks: For a shopper who has a budget only allowing for bargains, they could enjoy a refreshing walk in the brightly lit corridors surrounded by unique and fine tropical decor...but while not completely impossible, it is highly unlikely that someone could walk away from Millennia with large grab-bags of bottom-dollar bargains. Upon browsing the  clothing boutiques, the average solid-colored knit pullover sweater cost between $70-$150. Signs of decline: Minimal. There are less than a dozen shuttered stores and many in-progress upgrades. Despite the high cost of the merchandise this mall is holding strong against the economic decline. Overall Rating: 5/5     www.mallatmillenia.com/‎

Lakeland Square Mall

Lakeland Square Mall

"North Lakeland making a comeback"

3800 US Highway 98 N Lakeland, Florida 33809 
863-859-5414 

This is the mall that I grew up with. It was opened in 1988 as the main shopping mall for Lakeland, Florida. Its best years were the 1990's and early 2000's, when it was almost always full and flourishing. It was one of my popular hangouts with my friends when I was a teen, as it was for many teens. It is a family friendly mall for the most part. Its leviathan competitors in Orlando and Tampa began their rise to glory in the 1990's and 2000's as well, but they did not have as large an impact on this mall as Lakeland's opening of the Lakeside Village in 2005. Belk moved there and some duplicate stores opened there as well. The mall has been on a steady decline ever since, but has some new hope on the horizon. Construction is under way for a Sports Authority and a special movie theater. 

Who its for: Originally the ideal middle class family shopping experience for Lakeland, it is now shifting to accommodate a lower income crowd and also a bit of an ethnic melting pot. New suburbs are cropping up around the mall's campus but the mall is still very near to some low income African-American and Latino neighborhoods. As a result, when the mall began to decline and stores such as the Gap left, some were replaced by generic bargain teen fashion and accessory stores with names like "Styles for Less" "$5Fashions" "Nova" and "Crush". These stores offer bags, shoes and jewelry that appear to be brand names but they are knock-offs and are literally only a few dollars in most cases.
There are still many stores for the middle class shoppers as well, and four of the six standard middle class anchors are open for business. The fifth is a popular bargain store for people seeking a good deal on fashion and home decor.

Its best assets: The standard Anchors, most of which have been there since the mall opened, are Sears, JCPenney, Macy's and Dillard's. The bargain anchor is a Burlington Coat Factory. The once shuttered sixth anchor is soon to be a Sports Authority. The mall has a Barnies Coffee, which is becoming uncommon. There is a hands-on pet store that has been open since the mall was born. It offers many kinds of pets including puppies, kittens, birds, lizards, small animals, fish and a tarantula. Most all of the pets can be handled and played with by the shoppers making it a fun interactive experience for children and families. Also, despite the shaky economy, the mall has managed to house a Hollister since 2007.

Other Great Retail: American Eagle, Lane Bryant, Victoria's Secret, Old Navy, Tilly's and several more.

What it lacks:  There is a Best Buy across the street, as well as a Target, home decor and office supply stores and Toys R Us, but the Barnes and Noble vacated the premises a few years ago, leaving Books A Million to be Lakeland's only bookstore and it is on the south side. The Waldenbooks vacated the mall interior several years before. This mall is in a middle to lower income area so there is no higher fashion. Someone shopping for designer brands like Lucky Brand or Coach would not find them here.

Signs of Decline: Moderate. About 25% of the stores, mostly the ones near the anchor stores, are shuttered. Several more stores that had been shuttered were filled in by bargain generic fashion stores for teens. These types of stores are often family owned and operated and come and go quickly.

Overall Rating: 3/5

lakelandsquare.com/‎

Westfield Brandon

Westfield Brandon

"Tampa's family adventure mall"

459 Brandon Town Center Dr  Brandon, FL 33511 (813) 661-6255

A Westfield shopping mall, Brandon Mall was opened in 1995 and has gone under a few different names over the years. It is a one-story mall with over 1,000,000 square feet of shopping space and dual-leveled anchors. It is the large family mall for the Tampa area. It was recently expanded by 150,000 square feet in 2007 when a Dick's Sporting Goods and several large restaurants including Cheesecake Factory were added to the front entrance. 

Who It's For: Brandon mall has something for almost everyone and is family oriented. It includes a carousel, an arcade, toy stores and a family "playhouse". There are stores to accommodate various walks of life and social classes with most of them being designed for middle class shoppers.

Its Best Assets: Besides its family features, there is GreatGlam.com, a store that appears to be an internet cafe but the shopper uses the provided pink Vaio laptops to browse a large stock of juinors' hip-hop fashion, which can be brought out from the back upon selection. There are several specialty restaurants outside the mall including (among others) Bahama Breeze, Red Robin and California Pizza Kitchen.

Other great retail: Anchors Macy's, Dillards, JcPenney and Sears; Express, Charlotte Russe, Claire's Boutique, The Limited, Godiva Chocolatier, Teavanna, Lucky Brand, Books-A-Million and many more.

What it Lacks: Little seems to be lacking at all since there are stores for families, professionals, teens, plus size and people from various social classes. This is not as upscale of a mall as the International Plaza, however, so anyone looking for the highest fashion (Such as Loius Vuitton or Tiffany & Co) Would not find it here.

Signs of Decline: Minimal. There are a dozen or less shuttered stores.

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

www.westfield.com/brandon/‎

International Plaza and Bay Street

The International Plaza and Bay Street 

2223 N Westshore Blvd  Tampa, FL 33607 (813) 342-3790

"Upscale Tampa Shopping"

Tampa's most upscale mall, this shopping center was opened in 2001 in Tampa's Westshore business district. Like the Florida Mall in Orlando, it is placed next to an International Airport.
The Renaissance Hotel was opened on its campus in 2006. This mall features a section that is outdoors and includes several restaurants, bars and art galleries, as well as its three anchors and 200+ internal stores and food court.

Who It's For: Since this is an upscale mall near an international airport, it attracts mainly the more affluent American families and single professionals and also the affluent foreign guests. There are stores  that accommodate a more middle class shopper and the young shoppers, such as Forever XXI and Gap, scattered throughout, but more than half of the stores are high fashion such as Louis Vuitton and Michael Kors.

Its best assets: This mall is known for its upper class shopping experience, so its highlights are stores such as Tiffany & Co., Sperry Topsider, Diesel, Burberry and many more that are not found in more common family malls in smaller areas.
Other great retail: Express, Abercrombie and Fitch, Clarks, Teavanna, Lush, Nordstrom and many more.
What it lacks: There are stores for every member of the family and fashions appropriate for its international shoppers, but this mall would not accommodate a lower income crowd very well. There are a handful of stores with affordable fashions for a more middle class shopper but it would take a great deal of patience and diligence to find a large number of goods for only a small amount of money.
Someone who typically shops at stores such as Ross would have a hard time finding bargains here.

Overall Rating: 5/5

www.shopinternationalplaza.com/‎

The Florida Mall

The Florida Mall

8001 S Orange Blossom Trail  Orlando, FL 32809 (407) 851-7234 "The mall of the amusement parks"

A Simon Mall, the Florida Mall is one of the largest single-story malls in the United States.
It has nearly 2,000,000 sq ft of leasable area and is home to over 250 stores. It was opened in 1986 and built very close to the Orlando International Airport. It is found off "I-Drive" in Orlando, a major road that links tourists with their attractions. Like the nearby amusement parks in the city, the mall is also colorful, lively and packed full of family fun. 

Who it’s for: This mall "lives" in one of the most popular tourist cities: Orlando. Home to Disney World and Universal Studios, among other theme parks and attractions, Orlando hosts people from every country, every ethnicity, every social class and every walk of life. Most are only here for vacation, but some are permanent residents. The mall accommodates the many tourists. Its stores suit mostly the middle and higher social classes, but the wide range of products offered there suits many different needs. There are more than several options for children, babies, teenagers, young adults, professional men and women, and athletes. There are stores selling technology, toys, beauty supplies, candy and swim/surf attire. There are also dozens of kiosks for everything else- from belt buckles to hair curlers to cell phones. Any tourist seeking any particular product that they either forgot or promised to bring home to their friends would most likely find it here.   

Its best assets: Since it serves a bustling tourist central, there are some unusual ones here. Some finer examples are: a massive luxury hotel that is attached to the mall with an exit from the lobby that goes directly into the mall.  There is an innovative new restaurant that is open-air in the middle of the mall and sports a long winding conveyor belt with dozens of sushi dishes circulating around slowly. Dining guests pay for a certain color plate and they can take any sushi off the belt if it is on a plate of that color.
This mall is home to a large M&M's store with every color and flavor of M&M's available in bulk.
There are many apparel stores for the teens and 20's, some of which are rather unique. One store is called "Garage" and it is based out of Canada. It doesn't have many stores in the US yet at all. Orlando's is one of only 2 in Florida. The clothes are hipster and urban styles and are a bit reminiscent of Cotton-On, which is also in this mall. "Justice", a sparkly and trendy store for little girls ages 4-11, has an unusual addition in the back called "Brothers", which is trendy store for little boys ages 4-11 also. This mall was also home to Florida's very first H&M store.

Other great retail: Anchors such as Dillard's, JCPenney, Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue. Specialty stores such as Hollister, Abercrombie & Fitch, Puma, Cotton On, Zara, Forever XXI, Dick's Sporting Goods, Apple and many more.

What it lacks: Essentially? Nothing. Although this mall is intended for people with more expendable income, so there are very few of the truly cheap fashion stores such as Wet Seal or Rainbow. Those types of stores typically are found in malls catering to middle to lower income areas. Someone looking to fill their bags for next to nothing would have some options, but not as many as if they were to shop in the mall in Lakeland or at the outlet malls in Orlando and St. Augustine. 

Signs of decline: Minimal. This mall is literally bustling with hundreds of shoppers from every nationality.

Rating: 5/5

www.simon.com/mall/the-florida-mall‎

Announcing the Cross State Mall Tour

The Cross-State Mall Tour

Seven Malls
Six Cities
Four Days

Posted Saturday August 24 

"I will be heading from St. Augustine FL, where I live, to Lakeland FL where I came from originally. I stay with my parents when I go there. On the way down from St. Augustine, I take I-4. This passes through cities Altamonte and Orlando, eventually reaching Lakeland and it goes onward to Tampa. There are some fantastic mall opportunities along that highway!

Since I have vacation time off of work, I have some leisure time to stay longer than the weekend. That being the case, I have declared a “cross state mall tour”."

This tour included:

-Altamonte Mall

-Mall at Millenia

-The Florida Mall

-Lakeland Square Mall

-Brandon Town Center

-The International Plaza
-Seminole Town Center

This tour serves two purposes:

1)      To refresh my memory of what each one has to offer and how the economy is impacting it, so I can write an accurate review.

2)      To give you photographic proof I was there.

On top of photographing myself at the leviathan shopping centers, I will be collecting a small “trophy” from each: A colorful scarf, in light of it coming into the fall season. 

Saturday August 24: The Florida Mall, Orlando
Food court entrance

 Me walking down one of the corridors

 The new "Wasabi" open air sushi restaurant near the food court. The sushi runs on a conveyor belt.

 The Florida hotel which is attached to the mall. 

 The Florida hotel entrance inside the mall.

August 25: International Plaza and Bay Street Gallery, Tampa

Starbucks hubbub outside the Neimann Marcus

 The glass elevators and fountains by the food court.

 Me standing on the upper level near the Louis Vuitton

 Bay Street Gallery: an outdoor "town center" adjunct to mall, accessed from the food court exits, that includes fine dining and art galleries.

Westfield Brandon. August 26.
Front Entrance 

 The center court carousel

 Some of the restaurants right outside, as well as a fountain

 Me by a manatee statue in one of the corridors

 A peaceful and sunny corridor

 Lakeland Square Mall. August 26. 

One of the main entrances

 Construction of the future Sports Authority and movie theater

 Center court, stil with its 80's architecture but with a newer floor and kiosks instead of its original fountains and benches.

 Advertising for the future upgrades

 Me enjoying a beverage at the Barnie's Coffee

The Mall At Millennia, Orlando. August 27.
Reflective blue glass entryway

 Center court and all its glory, with LCD screens and music playing

One of the sunny, open corridors as seen from the second level

 A giant orchid statue

 Altamonte Mall, Altamonte Springs. August 27.
A lively bottom-level corridor

 A quieter top level corridor

 Me posing in the top level

 A JCPenney renovated to look more like an IKEA or other somewhat upscale home decor boutique.

 One of the many understated entryways

 Seminole Town Center, Sanford. August 27.
A mall like a shotgun house: look out from the Macy's on one end and see clear to the other end.

 Middle-mall, a food court sign and bizarre series of small ramps and stairs reminiscent of the late 80's.

 Front entryway as seen from the interstate

 Me, looking tired as this is the last in my tour.