The state of shopping malls in Jeddah: a consumer-level structural equation modelling approach to behavioural mall resilience in the context of the “death of the mall” debate
Cross-sectional study reveals customer support, image, and atmospherics drive patronage among mall shoppers, indicating adaptive socio-spatial resilience against mall decline.
Key Points
To examine consumer-level mechanisms of mall patronage and loyalty under the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework amid the ongoing debate surrounding shopping mall obsolescence.
Quantitative cross-sectional survey administered to N=474 recent mall visitors in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, via mall-intercept and online formats.
Structural relationships between mall attributes, perceived value, shopper attitudes, patronage, and loyalty tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM).
Customer support, mall image, and environmental atmospherics acted as the primary positive predictors of shopper attitudes, experiences, patronage, and loyalty.
Mall patronage significantly mediated the path connecting consumer experience and attitude to long-term mall loyalty.
Hedonic, emotional, and utilitarian values all positively influenced behavioural outcomes, confirming that malls maintain relevance as both functional and experiential environments.