I am that way about our local mall. I used to go to the mall quite frequently when I was younger with small children; but, no more. And, I never go there at night.
I have one more complaint which may explain the online trend. The manufacturers went, and maybe are still going, on a binge of taking a simple product and making multiple variations of it. What I noticed was at some point, items I used to be able to get at multiple stores, I could no longer find. The shelf space being taken up by multiple variations of the same product, squeezing what I used to buy off the shelves. It is now at the point where most of the stuff I want to buy (toothpaste, deodorant, etc.) is no longer available to me at a store. However, I can get most of it online --- so, I order these things online.
That's called extending a brand - or brand extensions. I agree it's gotten rather ridiculous. Even Oreo cookies now come in different colors and flavors. Watermelon Oreos? Seriously?
However, it has proven to be an effective way for businesses to wring additional revenues out of a long-standing product category while squeezing competitors off the shelf.
