I Spent 3 Days Interviewing Teens at American Dream Mall. Here’s What I Learned.
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Despite the many headlines decrying the end of mall culture, New Jersey’s American Dream mall has become an epicenter of sorts for teen shopping. Sure it’s dealing with a recent spate of legal troubles (froma property-valuation lawsuitto another lawsuit alleging aviolation of the state’s “blue laws”), but that hasn’t stopped teens and tweens across New Jersey, New York, and beyond from making their weekly Saturday and Sunday trips. Just last year, 80,000 people — many of them under 14 — lined up there to celebrate the launch of Salish Matter’s skin-care brandSincerely Yours, and a few stores, like A Bathing Ape and Pop Mart, draw lines on weekends. Not to mention that when I recently went on an average Sunday, the mall was teeming with teens toting shopping bags from Sephora, Hollister, and Garage while dressed in their finest sweat sets. To get a sense of what’scoolat shopping malls according to the quintessential target audience — teens — I spent three days at American Dream chatting with shoppers age 12 to 18 about their habits and preferences. Below, everything I learned.
They’re shopping at a new class of mall brands.
Stores like Altar’d State — which carries home goods with Christian undertones and teenybopper staples like sundresses and baggy jeans — Alo, and even Aritzia have replaced extinct teen favorites like Forever 21, Wet Seal, dELiA*s, and Justice. When I asked teens what stores they would like to see open at American Dream, multiple teens mentioned Brandy Melville, Edikted, and Skims.
But what’s old is new again (at least for the girls).
Almost every girl I chatted with had Pacsun, Hollister, and Garage on their hit list, and they’re more or less shopping for the same thing teens were 20 years ago: tops, tops, and more tops. Thegraphic tees from Hollisterare less self-referential these days, but they’re still on New Jersey teens Anna, Hana, and Sonam’s shopping lists. Tank tops from Hollister, Garage, and Pacsun also got four mentions.
Uniqlo has won over the boys.
Two groups of teenage boys I chatted with had plans to go to Uniqlo, and 14-year-old Noah from New Jersey says it’s his favorite store at American Dream. “I like the shorts, the sweatpants, and the sweatshirts because it doesn’t have a logo, it’s plain, and a nice material.”
Sneakers — especially those from Nike — arestilla hot commodity among teenage boys.
While some boys, like Marshall, Vinny, and Tommy from Rhode Island, made sure to browse the Vans store, 17-year-old Etamar was ready to shop at any store that had his shoes of choice: Jordans and Air Force 1’s. JD Sports was a hot spot to browse.
Unsurprisingly, shopping at Sephora is nonnegotiable for girls age 12 to 18.
Teens shopping there mentioned looking for products from Rhode, Summer Fridays, Sincerely Yours, and Emi Jay.
The girls are split between Alo and Lululemon.
Even among friend groups, the verdict was split: “Lululemon is just so expensive, and I feel like I can find better stuff,” Sonam told me, whereas her friend Anna says she still likes the shorts. (The Lululemon Define jacket also came up.) I ran into Jersey-based 13-year-old Emma and 14-year-old Juliet outside of Alo, where they had just bought some claw clips, which are a hot commodity at their middle school. “I used to like Lululemon, but I think Alo has better quality and colors,” Juliet told me. “Me and my mom both think that Lululemon just needs a big influencer or celebrity to make a video on them, and they will come back.”
Girls are trying things on, and boys are buying blind.
Twelve of the girls I interviewed told me they liked to try things on, while just two boys said the same. For 16-year-old Marshall from Rhode Island, skipping the fitting room ultimately comes down to speed. “I like fast-paced shopping,” he says. “Trying things on is kind of slow.” The girls who make the time to try items on appreciate that they learn more than they would browsing online: “Some clothes make you look tanner, your eyes better,” 15-year-old Jelena told me.
There’s more or less a uniform. (And it’s actually carefully curated.)
Most guys I chatted with and spotted were wearing gray sweatpants and a white tee. Girls preferredlow-rise baggy jeansor sweatpants and a tank top orsweatshirt(often from Aviator Nation, Aelfric Eden, or Alo), a uniform that 13-year-old Hana describes as “lazy girl or clean girl.”
Their footwear is always casual.
It’s all about Nike socks paired with Birkenstock Bostons, Birkenstock Arizonas, and UGG Tasman slippers. Juliet and Ella were wearing Brunch slippers (a brand that they also want to see at American Dream).
The mall is once again a place to hang out.
In addition to shopping, they’re prowling the food court, surfing at theindoor wave pool, and even going on roller coasters at the Nickelodeon Universe theme park. I stopped counting after ten teens declined an interview because they said they weren’tactuallyshopping.
American Dream is the place to be on weekends.
Most stores were sparsely populated on Thursday and Friday, but gaggles of teens were prowling the mall when I returned on Sunday.
Their modes of payment vary drastically.
When shopping alone, some use their own money, some have an allowance, and some, like Juliet and Ella, have access to their parents’ Apple Pay. “I have to ask before I buy things,” Juliet clarifies. For other teens, like Etamar, it depends on what they’re buying. “When I’m buying my shoes, it’s my money. When it’s clothes I need for school, it’s my parents’ money,” he told me.
A good sale can convert them.
While 14-year-old Miranda from New Jersey had never heard of jewelry brand Lovisa before shopping at American Dream, a four-for-$15 sale made her think, “Oh my gosh, I’m going to that,” she told me. Her haul included bangles, hoops, dangly earrings, and a cross necklace.
The mall is worth the journey (or the road trip).
I chatted with teens who had traveled to American Dream from Maine, Rhode Island, and Delaware.
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