Shopping Malls Refocusing to Compete with Online Retailers - as part of the news series by GeoBeats.

Shopping malls have some stiff competition with more and more people shopping online, but shopping centers like the Scottsdale Quarter in Arizona are stepping up their game to include dining and other experiences that can’t be had while shopping online. Stores like Make Meaning that offer classes and hands on activities are recreating the mall experience.

Michael P. Glimcher from Glimcher Realty Trust, which owns and operates several shopping malls, said that although customers can get almost anything online, the prospective customer "can’t go out to lunch with her girlfriends and have a glass of wine and a salad online, she can’t get her hair done online. She can’t go and make pottery or soap or a cake online.”

Shopping malls were designed to centralize the shopping experience and make it convenient to get all your shopping done in one place. Now, the internet is doing the same. From under 100 billion in 2008, the amount of money spent online continues to grow each year. For example in 2010, American shoppers “spent 186 billion dollars in online transactions.”

What do you prefer - shop online or at a mall?