Placer.ai: U.S. malls see big traffic lift in January

America's shopping malls saw a big increase in customer visits in January compared to a year ago.

Visits increased 4.1% at indoor malls, 5.2% at open-air lifestyle centers and 2.7% at outlet malls, compared to January 2022, according to a new report from foot traffic analytics firm Placer.ai.

“The wider trend of YoY uptick is significant because of the draw these formats have shown in the face of powerful economic challenges,” stated Ethan Chernofsky, senior VP of marketing, Placer.ai. 

A final indication of the return of mall normalcy is the distribution of visits throughout the week, according to the report. Where December saw the relative decline of Sunday visits —because of the holidays falling out on these days — January has seen the return of weekend shopping. 

Compared to before the pandemic, however, visits are still down. Versus three years ago, visits in January were down 11.6% at indoor malls, down 8% at open-air lifestyle centers and down 8.4% at outlet malls.

The report noted that while visits did return to declines compared to 2020 the weeks beginning January 16th and 23rd, the gaps did show a positive trajectory decline week over week.

“When we look back at mall performance in 2022, the general takeaway is one of relative success for a segment that had been uniquely challenged by the pandemic and its retail effects,” stated Chernofsky. “This was especially impressive considering that the impact of COVID was rapidly replaced by economic headwinds that limited a full return to business as usual.”

To read the full report, Placer.ai Mall Index: January 2023 — Returning Mall Normalcy?, click here.

About Placer.ai Mall Indexes

The Indexes analyze data from more than 100 top-tier indoor malls, 100 open-air lifestyle centers (not including outlet malls) and 100 outlet malls across the country, in both urban and suburban areas. Placer.ai uses anonymized location information from a panel of 30 million devices and processes the data using industry-leading AI and machine learning capabilities to make estimations about overall visits to specific locations.