Assignment 6: Erica

I visited Lenox Square Mall on a sunny Saturday around 3pm, where the surrounding streets were congested with large numbers of mall shoppers. The scene indoors was similar, with hundreds of people packed into the walking areas making travel at any speed rather difficult. Lenox Square is a relatively large mall consisting of four levels with three anchors: Bloomingdale's, Neiman Marcus, and Macy's (each with 2-3 levels of their own). A large parking lot surrounds most of the mall and is aided by multiple parking decks with separate entrances as well as valet parking. Interestingly, it seems the entrances used by shoppers are self-segregated by class based on the parking situation. Upper class clientele are more apt to enter through the primary Peachtree street entrance because it is served by the valet and paid parking areas. Middle class shoppers tend to enter through the side entrances and through department stores in an effort to enter the mall as quickly as possible from their parking location. Working class shoppers and employees usually enter through the rear, near the food court, because this is the entrance served by MARTA's Lenox Station. Obviously there are many exceptions but the placement of specific types of stores within the mall suggests that some thought has gone into this phenomenon. This photograph shows one of the side "arcades" that leads to high-end department store Neiman Marcus. As you can see, there are significantly fewer shoppers heading down this side arcade because there are equally high end retail stores like Louis Vuitton that few shoppers can afford. In this way, certain areas of the mall are also segregated by class.

Patrons of Lenox Square come in a variety of races, ages, and genders, which creates an interesting atmosphere in the central aisle of the mall. The elderly walk slowly and purposefully by the stores while groups of teenagers talking amongst themselves and pay little attention to where they are walking. Those seeking to window shop and those on a specific mission mingle amidst these groups, resulting in frequent traffic jams and dirty looks from fellow patrons. It seems most shoppers at Lenox are involved in the "just looking" phase of their purchase and may in fact never reach the buying stage. Most stores are relatively empty of customers as it seems more people are interested in being seen than actual buying. In this way Lenox Square fails to entrap its customers in the traditional manner and serves more as a place for socialization.

The services typically found in a modern shopping mall as described by Crawford are still alive at Lenox Square, especially in the food court. Lenox features not only an extensive food court at the rear of the mall, but also several restaurants scattered throughout other areas. Another interesting feature is the outdoor plaza level that includes additional service-oriented retail spaces like tailors, dry cleaners, and optometrists. This area is difficult to find from the main thoroughfare of the mall's interior and the only people who may happen across it are those parked at the bottom of the nearby parking deck. There is little attempt or opportunity to attract customers to this area and thus it isn't a viable option for most stores.