China’s Mall Boom Amid US Closures: What Investors and Business Owners Need to Know
DALIAN, China — China’s retail landscape is marked by a massive construction boom that has led to an oversupply of shopping malls, contrasting sharply with the closure trend seen in the United States. Since 2013, while one in six American malls has shut down, China has doubled its number of malls, now totaling around 6,700.
This rapid expansion has created a divide among malls in China: some flourish with strong customer traffic, while others struggle to attract visitors. A notable sign of this shift is Apple’s recent closure of its store in Dalian’s InTime City mall, marking the first such closure for Apple in China. However, Apple’s second Dalian outlet in Olympia 66 remains operational and has absorbed staff from the closed location.
Globally, shopping malls face intense pressure from e-commerce, and China is no exception. The country’s efficient and affordable home delivery system—employing millions of delivery workers using electric scooters, self-driving trucks, and drones—amplifies this challenge. Moreover, years of aggressive, debt-driven construction in China’s real estate sector have compounded the problem, even as retail sales have declined since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Local government policies have played a significant role in sustaining mall construction. Local authorities, which wield strong influence over development, benefit from sales taxes generated by malls while receiving minimal revenue from residential real estate taxes. As a result, new large-scale real estate projects often include malls, with no sign of slowdown—evident in the 430 malls that opened across China last year alone. This contrasts with the United States, where there are currently 1,107 malls for a population one-quarter the size of China’s.
Ron Johnson, Apple’s former retail chief who helped establish Apple’s retail presence, observed years ago that China was overbuilding malls at an unsustainable rate. Today, malls like Dalian’s InTime City exemplify these struggles, featuring vacant storefronts—including the former Apple store—and signs announcing upcoming openings with no further details. The mall has faced financial difficulties since 2022, exacerbated by China’s prolonged “zero-COVID” lockdowns, and has been involved in ongoing litigation.
Economic pressures have further affected consumer spending. A nationwide drop in apartment prices, following government efforts to cool a decades-long real estate bubble, has depleted the savings of China’s middle class. Surveys show that two-thirds of department stores reported lower sales and profits last year, primarily due to reduced shopper traffic and spending power.
Despite these challenges, Dalian itself shows resilience. The city benefits from significant investments in manufacturing, naval shipbuilding, and tourism, with retail sales growing 7.4% in the first half of 2025 compared to the previous year. Retailers remain interested in the city; Jerry Mao of Shanghai Tang is actively seeking a mall location in Dalian but excludes InTime City due to its lack of customer activity.
For Apple, the difficulties extend beyond mall selection. The company faces stiff competition from domestic smartphone brands like Huawei and Xiaomi, alongside soft consumer demand. Government incentives for purchasing manufactured goods have helped some sectors, and Apple reported a 4.4% sales increase in the region (mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao) for the quarter ending June, with a 4.7% rise in operating income. Apple expects to maintain its 58 stores in China by year-end, closing its InTime City location after other retailers in the mall shuttered.
InTime City, inaugurated in 1999 as Parkland Mall in Dalian’s historic and once-fashionable neighborhood, symbolized a high-end shopping destination. However, the city’s dramatic growth—from fewer than 175,000 registered vehicles at the mall’s opening to 2.17 million today—has changed the area’s dynamics. The mall’s location fell out of favor partly because subway stations were established nearby but not directly underneath it, limiting accessibility. Meanwhile, malls situated atop subway stations see thriving visitor numbers.
To attract shoppers, Chinese malls are increasingly incorporating entertainment and dining experiences. For instance, Guangzhou’s Grandview Mall features a large aquarium, while Dalian’s Pavilion Shopping Center hosts events like children’s music competitions to draw families. Older malls like InTime City dedicate only about one-sixth of their space to food outlets, compared to newer malls such as Pavilion and Olympia 66, which allocate nearly a third, capitalizing on the growing trend of dining out in China.
Gift shops also retain strong appeal, especially among younger female visitors who enjoy browsing and socializing in these venues. Gu Meilin, a young resident of Dalian, highlighted the allure of small, delicate items found in such stores.
ظهرت هذه المقالة أصلا في صحيفة نيويورك تايمز.
تحليل خاص من عمانت | تصفح سوق عُمان
China’s aggressive mall-building spree amidst slowing retail sales signals potential overcapacity and declining foot traffic, highlighting the risks of unchecked real estate development fueled by short-term tax incentives. For businesses in Oman, this underscores the importance of strategic site selection and diversification beyond traditional retail, particularly embracing integrated entertainment and dining experiences to attract customers. Smart investors should prioritize malls or retail projects with strong location advantages and evolving consumer appeal while being cautious of ventures driven solely by speculative growth.
Arabic 
English 
Persian