Thanks so much for this visit back to my childhood mall. I grew up in Concord, MI about 15 miles from Jackson and this was the closest mall we had. I never realized how small it was until we moved to California. I mean it was micro small. It used to have a theatre attached to it called Westwood Cinema. The last movie I saw there was John Hughes' Pretty In Pink in 1986 with my older teenage sister and afterwards when we regrouped with my Mom, I remember begging her to take me to the JCPenney and The Gap to get some clothes like Molly Ringwald. I got the soundtrack on cassette that same day as well at the record shop there (Wherehouse Records?) then off to get nachos at Hot Sam's and some hello kitty stickers at Little Wishes. Good memories. Glad to see it has stayed clean and keeps its nostalgic architecture but wish it had more life and actively running shops.
Well it has one new tenant of recent, 517 RC drift - and indoor RC Drift place, pretty fun place to go. Yeah it’s pretty dead, I was there this past weekend, also saw diralect movie theater sign (looked like 2 screens) sign on the front. Jackson, at least downtown, seems like they are trying to revitalize it, hard to tho with so much industry gone from the heyday many years ago.
Glad to see a small town mall that still has life to it, unfortunate that Kohan had to buy it out of all people. But hey, at least we have quality videos like yours to remember these malls by!
@@sherirutan7797 It really is the Kohan firm squeezing this place dry, I still do think there's space in the market for this place but it just needs passionate owners and a competitive edge. Thanks for the reply!
I just recently went to Westwood, And I went up to the gate of the former Younkers, I put my hand in one of the gaps of the gate and the store was freezing cold.
Thank you for the video. Since the making of this video 5-6 more stores have moved out. The Buckle, Kay Jewelers, The Shoe Department, At&T, Bath and Body just to name a few. It feels like a ghost town most days I walk. The mall is always spotless. So sad to see another mall vanish. It was beautiful in its former days.
That F.Y.E. store used to be a Record Town and Saturday Matinee combo store and they rebranded the chain to FYE. Was shocked to see they still have the Saturday Matinee sign, neon record in the ceiling and keyboards coming from the ceiling. I used to manage one of those stores in Brockton, MA.
The skittles "store" is actually a vending machine by the Applebee's, and the fye has closed within the last 2 months, as well as the bath and body works and kay jewelry that both closed simetime last year
Westwood Mall is the lone survivor of a trio of nearly identical malls built by the same developers. The other two were Maple Hill Mall in Kalamazoo and North Kent Mall in Grand Rapids. Both were de-malled in the early 2000's.
The first time I walked into Maple Hill Mall. I kind of freaked out. I thought I might have teleported to Westwood mall. Even the main stores were in the same place.
Even though no one ever mentions it, you actually got a really good shot of the old Things Remembered kiosk. That was cool to see, especially since it closed a long time ago, I'm thinking like 6-8 years or so
It’s a shame so many trees and fountains were removed from malls across America from renovations in the 90s. I don’t know why that stuff wasn’t considered modern anymore by the 1990s.
Thank you for stirring pleasant memories of the past for me. I was there 50 years ago. Grew up in Jackson. Mom and I would go out to eat at the Elias Brothers' Big Boy restaurant that was near the Knapp's at the west end. I sang with my Frost Junior High choir in the center of the mall in a winter season. Shopped at the Montgomery Ward's often. Still have some of the clothes from there. That was our mall and was plenty large for me, a ten-year-old, when it opened in 1972. Now I live in the greater Prescott, Arizona area. There I have the Gateway Mall, also waning. But, the Walmart Supercenter is across the highway and to the west. Does that mean my mall may go on for a while?
this gives 'tiny town mall' vibes. Australia build 'shopping hubs" in the larger town between the smaller towns giving residents a closer place to shop with a large grocery (Woolworths or Coles) and a department store (Big w Kmart target) as Anchors but due to the small sizes of these town they are always pretty quiet.
Hey @Northcdogg22 love the content! Any way that you can set these to premiere? I just think it'd be nice to sit down, watch the video and chat with you and the community.
I enjoy the old photos of the malls you find. It reminds me of the shoulder to shoulder foot traffic that was to be expected. I liked the Valley West mall video. Have lots of memories there, and thought it was still open.
My guess is you don't have stock in "Amazing Space"? 😅 Thanks for listing muzak/music used! On To next week's properly covered dead or dying mall.. always fun!
I thought I was in Parkway Plaza at El Cajon of San Diego in CA because the layout looks kind of familiar, it also has Walmart but FYE was gone as I last time to visit on October 2022.. I'm not going to say that mall is dead, but just less foot traffic and more empty store fronts. It also used to had a carousel which also gone years ago, as a San Diegan I just feel depressing when I went in there. Good video to watch anyway, and if you are interesting to visit the malls in San Diego, I may suggest Parkway Plaza as I mentioned, and North County Mall, or former named Westfield North County, they are not really dead---yet, well for me, but just feel depressing for now.
The only amazing thing about that "Amazing Place" is that they get away with calling it an arcade. But that FYE was aesthetic as hell. The FYE at my childhood mall, the York Galleria still has some neon. Not as much as this one, but some cool blue lining lights around the store. This is a great video, definitely subscribing
While not dead yet, unfortunately based upon past precedent, with the current owners it sadly could happen; they sure don't have a good track record of turning around places. I love the aesthetics from the 70's and it is always sad when most if not all of these features are taken out for upgrades. Those fountains looked awesome; sure wish there was a way to bring them back and have the mall go more retro in its look. As always, a nice job; thanks for the work you do in preserving the history of malls.
Interesting things about Westwood Mall: It's about 2 miles from another mall Jackson Crossing. Hallway to right of WalMart has a nice memorial to people who passed away from Covid. If you take Amtrak train through Jackson you can see the mall out the window. This might be the tiniest JCPenney I ever visited.
It would have to be Westland Mall you mention at the end because Southland has no basement or unless you went to Eastland before it closed. Westland has a tailor downstairs.
Pretty nice mall. The FYE and Gamestop are the highlights for me, especially the FYE. If Dunham's sports or another good sporting goods retailer (Not Dicks Sporting Goods) gets on board this place would be perfect for me.
How are these stores able to stay open with darn near zero customers? I know in the Christmas season sales will pick up but for the rest of the year they will be starving. The employees must sit and play on their phones half the time.
FYE is pronounced "Eff Why EEE", not FIE. It is an acronym meaning "For Your Entertainment". I have never heard anyone call if FIE except you and I was around for The Wall and Sam Goody.
Actually RRR you’d be surprised just how many native speakers in Iowa say it like FIE, my whole family, my friends and many other people I’ve known. I guess I’ve always seen it like you can call it either
I miss the old days of Westwood mall
Thanks so much for this visit back to my childhood mall. I grew up in Concord, MI about 15 miles from Jackson and this was the closest mall we had. I never realized how small it was until we moved to California. I mean it was micro small. It used to have a theatre attached to it called Westwood Cinema. The last movie I saw there was John Hughes' Pretty In Pink in 1986 with my older teenage sister and afterwards when we regrouped with my Mom, I remember begging her to take me to the JCPenney and The Gap to get some clothes like Molly Ringwald. I got the soundtrack on cassette that same day as well at the record shop there (Wherehouse Records?) then off to get nachos at Hot Sam's and some hello kitty stickers at Little Wishes. Good memories. Glad to see it has stayed clean and keeps its nostalgic architecture but wish it had more life and actively running shops.
Well it has one new tenant of recent, 517 RC drift - and indoor RC Drift place, pretty fun place to go. Yeah it’s pretty dead, I was there this past weekend, also saw diralect movie theater sign (looked like 2 screens) sign on the front. Jackson, at least downtown, seems like they are trying to revitalize it, hard to tho with so much industry gone from the heyday many years ago.
The Target at the Jackson Crossing mall was opened in the 90’s
Glad to see a small town mall that still has life to it, unfortunate that Kohan had to buy it out of all people. But hey, at least we have quality videos like yours to remember these malls by!
Thanks Josh!
Jackson isn't small tho?
I'm not that familiar with the city, but Ill have to look up the population. It looks like a nice area.@@Hendrickfan4Life
This mall is dead. There’s barely any stores in there now. Maybe 5 stores? Somehow Hot Topic is still thriving.
@@sherirutan7797 It really is the Kohan firm squeezing this place dry, I still do think there's space in the market for this place but it just needs passionate owners and a competitive edge. Thanks for the reply!
I just recently went to Westwood, And I went up to the gate of the former Younkers, I put my hand in one of the gaps of the gate and the store was freezing cold.
Im so upset that you do not have anymore support for your content, it is so well made!
It’s alright, we’re slowly growing and I’m happy for the ones I have here now!
The walmart is killing this mall. Especially the less than stellar people who shop at that Walmart.
Exactly. Right on the mark.
Thank you for the video. Since the making of this video 5-6 more stores have moved out. The Buckle, Kay Jewelers, The Shoe Department, At&T, Bath and Body just to name a few. It feels like a ghost town most days I walk. The mall is always spotless. So sad to see another mall vanish. It was beautiful in its former days.
Fye just closed well having final sale now :(
@magic4life925 I have a feeling that hot topic may also be on its way out. It had a 40% off whole store sale
That F.Y.E. store used to be a Record Town and Saturday Matinee combo store and they rebranded the chain to FYE. Was shocked to see they still have the Saturday Matinee sign, neon record in the ceiling and keyboards coming from the ceiling. I used to manage one of those stores in Brockton, MA.
Use to love the westwood mall I don't know how it stays open
The skittles "store" is actually a vending machine by the Applebee's, and the fye has closed within the last 2 months, as well as the bath and body works and kay jewelry that both closed simetime last year
Westwood Mall is the lone survivor of a trio of nearly identical malls built by the same developers. The other two were Maple Hill Mall in Kalamazoo and North Kent Mall in Grand Rapids. Both were de-malled in the early 2000's.
I actually had no clue those existed, would’ve been awesome to have seen her sisters, but at least we have this one left!
The first time I walked into Maple Hill Mall. I kind of freaked out. I thought I might have teleported to Westwood mall. Even the main stores were in the same place.
Did you see those cranes at the first???
You know things are gonna take a turn for the worse when a mall is acquired by Kohan.
Literally
Even though no one ever mentions it, you actually got a really good shot of the old Things Remembered kiosk. That was cool to see, especially since it closed a long time ago, I'm thinking like 6-8 years or so
It’s a shame so many trees and fountains were removed from malls across America from renovations in the 90s. I don’t know why that stuff wasn’t considered modern anymore by the 1990s.
Ikr. Mall developers just saw some shift in how people “wanted” to shop, somehow, and felt the need to strip all of those aesthetics.
Short but sweet. Amazing video!
Thank you!
Thank you for stirring pleasant memories of the past for me. I was there 50 years ago. Grew up in Jackson. Mom and I would go out to eat at the Elias Brothers' Big Boy restaurant that was near the Knapp's at the west end. I sang with my Frost Junior High choir in the center of the mall in a winter season. Shopped at the Montgomery Ward's often. Still have some of the clothes from there. That was our mall and was plenty large for me, a ten-year-old, when it opened in 1972. Now I live in the greater Prescott, Arizona area. There I have the Gateway Mall, also waning. But, the Walmart Supercenter is across the highway and to the west. Does that mean my mall may go on for a while?
this gives 'tiny town mall' vibes. Australia build 'shopping hubs" in the larger town between the smaller towns giving residents a closer place to shop with a large grocery (Woolworths or Coles) and a department store (Big w Kmart target) as Anchors
but due to the small sizes of these town they are always pretty quiet.
Hey @Northcdogg22 love the content! Any way that you can set these to premiere? I just think it'd be nice to sit down, watch the video and chat with you and the community.
I’ve thought about it and it would be fun, but at the same time I’m not sure how many people would actually watch that, maybe in the future tho!
@@NorthCdogg22 honestly, I think a lot of people would.
Ima Watch All Of Your Series Episodes.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy them!
Nails and eyebrows places---yep, well into the death spiral....
Love the video, another dead mall another hurricane simulator. Any chance you will be stopping at Courtland Center Mall in Burton next?
Not next, but really really soon ;)
I enjoy the old photos of the malls you find. It reminds me of the shoulder to shoulder foot traffic that was to be expected. I liked the Valley West mall video. Have lots of memories there, and thought it was still open.
Bravo! Great episode!
Great video! Thanks.
My guess is you don't have stock in "Amazing Space"? 😅 Thanks for listing muzak/music used! On To next week's properly covered dead or dying mall.. always fun!
Love your videos. Thanks.
Thanks for watching!
I thought I was in Parkway Plaza at El Cajon of San Diego in CA because the layout looks kind of familiar, it also has Walmart but FYE was gone as I last time to visit on October 2022.. I'm not going to say that mall is dead, but just less foot traffic and more empty store fronts. It also used to had a carousel which also gone years ago, as a San Diegan I just feel depressing when I went in there. Good video to watch anyway, and if you are interesting to visit the malls in San Diego, I may suggest Parkway Plaza as I mentioned, and North County Mall, or former named Westfield North County, they are not really dead---yet, well for me, but just feel depressing for now.
how do u only have 6k subs i love your content bro
Thank you so much dude! We’re slowly growing!
The only amazing thing about that "Amazing Place" is that they get away with calling it an arcade. But that FYE was aesthetic as hell. The FYE at my childhood mall, the York Galleria still has some neon. Not as much as this one, but some cool blue lining lights around the store. This is a great video, definitely subscribing
Thank you so much man!
When I saw the name of this mall, I thought he was in Malton, Ontario which also has a mall called Westwood Mall (more commonly known as Wastewood),
While not dead yet, unfortunately based upon past precedent, with the current owners it sadly could happen; they sure don't have a good track record of turning around places. I love the aesthetics from the 70's and it is always sad when most if not all of these features are taken out for upgrades. Those fountains looked awesome; sure wish there was a way to bring them back and have the mall go more retro in its look. As always, a nice job; thanks for the work you do in preserving the history of malls.
That hurricane simulator has been there since around 2010, wild that it's still there
I'm guessing Westland mall where the city adopted it's name (it was Nankin township) after the mall was built as its own.
Yessir! You got it!
you should do Lakeside Mall in Sterling Heights, Michigan if you’re ever over there! That mall is getting so dead 😭 I’m so sad about it
It’s coming really soon trust me! It’s one of my favorites
@@NorthCdogg22 Looking forward to that one! Taubmans are the _best_ !
Are you going to Westland Mall next? That mall had an underground section.
Yup!
@@NorthCdogg22 I don't think there are any public restrooms in the in line sections you probably have to do 1 or 2 in Kohls
Amazing video as always North!
Interesting things about Westwood Mall:
It's about 2 miles from another mall Jackson Crossing. Hallway to right of WalMart has a nice memorial to people who passed away from Covid. If you take Amtrak train through Jackson you can see the mall out the window. This might be the tiniest JCPenney I ever visited.
It would have to be Westland Mall you mention at the end because Southland has no basement or unless you went to Eastland before it closed. Westland has a tailor downstairs.
I love your videos they are so amazing keep doing what you do best! Have a good day!
When the DVDs first came out I was 16 years old. When I seen other teenagers buying them I thought of them as rich kids.
What a time to be alive😂😂
Northland mall next?
Nope, but good guess!
I have never seen an FYE like that what a treat! Walmart in a mall is blasphemy!
Pretty nice mall. The FYE and Gamestop are the highlights for me, especially the FYE. If Dunham's sports or another good sporting goods retailer (Not Dicks Sporting Goods) gets on board this place would be perfect for me.
the gamestop here used to be a Baggages too, thats pretty neat
How are these stores able to stay open with darn near zero customers? I know in the Christmas season sales will pick up but for the rest of the year they will be starving. The employees must sit and play on their phones half the time.
I’m sure they do, there have been so many of these malls I’ve been to where the employees just aren’t present or they’re just sitting and texting lol
Kohan????????? it is DONE!!!!!!!!!
FYE is pronounced "Eff Why EEE", not FIE. It is an acronym meaning "For Your Entertainment". I have never heard anyone call if FIE except you and I was around for The Wall and Sam Goody.
Actually RRR you’d be surprised just how many native speakers in Iowa say it like FIE, my whole family, my friends and many other people I’ve known. I guess I’ve always seen it like you can call it either
Damn, Westwood Mall is REALLY dead! ⚰️
Northland Center Mall in Southfield?
Not quite but close!
Uhhhh Northland mall right?
Close! But not quite!
Maybe the mall might be closing because of the Walmart nextdoor
shoe dept. encore and buckle left the mall within a week. a few others have also left this year alone. not looking good