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Call of the Mall : The Geography of Shopping by the Author of Why We Buy
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List Price:
$24.95
IdealReferences.biz Price:
$12.89
Your Savings: $ 12.06 ( 48% )
Subject To Change Without Notice
Availability: N/A
Manufacturer: Amazon Remainders Account
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Binding: Hardcover
Format: Bargain Price
Label: Amazon Remainders Account
Manufacturer: Amazon Remainders Account
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 240
Publication Date: 2004-02-03
Publisher: Amazon Remainders Account
Studio: Amazon Remainders Account
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Editorial Reviews:
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Paco Underhill has a genius for retail. As a follow-up to the bestseller Why We Buy, he has written an arch entertaining ethnography of the shopping mall. Energized by two dripping cinnabons, Underhill guides readers on a walking tour to encounter senior mall walkers, teen jean and hoodie shoppers, shoe fetishists, six second sales greeters, kiosk vendors and food court diners. He nails our ambivalence about indoor shopping saying, "the mall, like television, is an easy American target for self-loathing. We look at the mall and wonder: is this the best we could do?" He gets the devil in the details with wonderful riffs about global malls, parking spaces, the "free" gift with cosmetics, retail tribalism (Nordstrom versus Ann Taylor, Pac Sun versus Abercrombie) and why CD and bookstores have returned to city streets. But Underhill doesn't whine. When he critiques multiplex theatres, raunchy bathrooms or the absence of coatrooms, he also offers witty suggestions. For example, how to turn a well-appointed restroom into a profit center. Underhill is convinced that online shopping and fatigued boomer shoppers are leading to the "post-mall era." This kind of prediction makes The Call of the Mall a great read. It is a smart, observant meditation--one that suggests the past and the future of our shopping culture. --Barbara Mackoff
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Fun examples, but limited take-aways and too NYC-loving
Comment: I teach Consumer Marketing and love social science interpretations of 'real world' behavior. Hence I picked up "Call to the Mall" with personal and professional excitement. Overall, I was disappointed. On the plus side, there are some wonderful examples of behavior that we all do or have seen. However, the is sadly little data to back these up for being more than informed opinions of the author or his companions. He has a company that does this, he must have access to great descriptive stats that would increases both the richness and credibility of his observations. The breezy style makes the book fun and easy to read but I found Mr. Underhill strong personal bias toward urban (especially NYC)shopping repeatedly annoying. I have lived in 8 states in both urban (including Manhattan) and suburban settings and the urban (even NYC) shopping isn't all glorious and the mall shopping all tacky, although you might think so after this book. It reminded me of my students in NYC who had so little breadth of experience that they thought all the world wished it could be like NYC. Finally, the walk-through-the-mall structure of the book emphasizes its lack of themes or theses. Not clear what you take-away about understanding shopping behavior, other than Mr. Underhill's opinion that malls are tacky, out-dated and not well designed (very possibly true but not supported by evidence other than his observations). While I understand that he is not an academic, he is a world-renowned expert on descriptive shopping behavior so I was looking for more richness of analysis and insight beyond the examples.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Controvertial Review of Shopping Malls
Comment: "Call Of The Mall" follows on from the most fascinating, entertaining and useful retail research book ever written, "Why We Buy. The Science of Shopping" which is a must read for everyone involved with retail.
"Call Of The Mall" is also easy to read, though it has far more of Paco Underhill's opinions and far less actual research to back up his conclusions. It examines how Americans use the mall, what it means, why it works when it does and why it often doesn't work at all well.
I have the feeling with this book that Paco Underhill has been reading too much of his publicity and now believes he is a witty, entertaining writer. So, in some ways it's a bit of a let down. However, for anyone involved in a management role within shopping centres it's still a `must read'.
Customer Rating:
Summary: It's Alright
Comment: I had to read this book for a consumer-behavior class. The subject matter is so interesting and full of unique little insights about our consumer culture, but Underhill gives only a cursory analysis; in reality, most of the book seems to be a mechanism for name-dropping clients and touting the glorious magic that is...Paco Underhill.
Underhill's writing style is flippant and annoying, but having said that, it is a quick and easy read and a good intro to anyone interested in the topic.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Somewhat engaging but not very informative
Comment: "The Call of the Mall" is a book that is sure to please the "minority" of Americans who do not favor the big box/stripmall/fashion mall culture of mainstream America. I am among that growing group of people seeking more sustainable, more humane geographical models of existing and getting along with one another. As an introduction to this notion, "Call of the Mall" is indeed "engaging" as another reviewed described it. However, it does not really address the underlying WHYS of the physical structure of modern America, nor does it propose realistic solutions.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Insider Tour of Malls
Comment: Underhill meanders through the mall voicing his observations aloud. It feels like an informal tour, but his knowledge of shoppers and retailers is based on the indepth study that has consumed his adult life.
Along the way, he entertains us with descriptions of avid women shoppers, men's discomfort in the mall setting and how teens and seniors interact with malls. The reader gains new insight into his/her own behavior while shopping and in the way the stores lure the buyer.
He touches on international malls, as well as the typical American mall. He exposes their flaws, suggests changes, and praises what works.
I kept feeling that there must be more to tell, as the effect is of a behind-the-scenes, but not all-the-secrets tour.
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