Asian malls in the U.S. are thriving post-pandemic, bucking a retail trend

Every weekend this summer, thousands of people have flocked to a seasonal night market in front of Asian Garden Mall in Westminster, California, to scoop up grilled razor clams, balut and fresh-squeezed sugar cane juice.

Twenty minutes north, in Buena Park, Yena Kim and Jackie Lee, both 16, visit The Source OC at least once a month. On a toasty July afternoon, they sipped Macanese-style dalgona milk tea from Flippoly, a dessert and sandwich joint, and played games at an internet cafe called Ultimate Esport.

“At American malls, you kind of just go shopping,” Kim said. “Here you come for the entertainment.”

While many U.S. malls are struggling to fill storefronts and attract shoppers who are increasingly hooked on e-commerce, malls that serve Asian American enclaves are seeing strong demand in the post-pandemic economy.

“Asian malls have survived because they cater to a need for community,” said Willow Lung-Amam, an associate professor of urban studies and planning and the director of the Small Business Anti-Displacement Network at the University of Maryland, College Park.