Assignment Six: Brandon Collins

Northpoint Mall is a regional shopping center that serves Fulton, Gwinnett, Forsyth, and Cherokee counties. Traditionally, this is a rather upscale area, and caters to mostly “emulators” and some “achievers” according to the VALS index, which Crawford mentions in her article. This being the case, Nortpoint has been hit harder by the economic situation than other malls. This is evidenced by the closing of two different mall anchors in the past year. Both Belk and Parisian’s are closed, leaving a void at one end of the mall. In some of the pictures, you can see the white drywall covering the empty areas. Interestingly, the mall ownership has covered some of these empty spaces with large photo murals of storefronts, which give the impression that one is passing by a store with large windows that is bustling with activity. Although the closing of the anchors has negatively impacted the mall, there are other attractions which continue to draw people to the location. Among these, there are activities for kids, which many parents utilize. One of the pictures is of a play area outside the closed Belk, and next to it, stationed at an unused kiosk, is a functional train which can be ridden around the mall. For adults, there is a Kodak computer kiosk, where one can access Facebook and upload photos, and an impromptu massage area, both of which are located in the sky-lit center of the mall, next to the escalators and elevators. Because of this light and open feeling, there are many mall walkers and teens that frequent the location.