LAUSR

Shopping malls are facing times of hardship due to the recent economic crisis, the maturity of this retailing format and the increasing competition of the electronic commerce. This study aims to examine and profile shopping mall customer segments, since this context of hardship may have altered the previous mall customer segmentations.Data from 511 shopping mall customers in a mature market and during a recessionary period was analyzed through two-step cluster analysis and a subsequent MANOVA.Results suggest that mall customer segments are no longer so in hard times; and five segments emerge, namely “senior hostelry seekers†, “young enthusiasts†, “deal hunters†, “adverse-reluctant customers†and “leisure comfy-teens†; being the “young enthusiasts†the most attractive segment; while the “adverse-reluctant customers†represent the main challenge for mall managers.