18 Unit 03 See it. Want it. Buy it. Read the article about Victor Gruen. First decide whether the statements (1–7) are true (T) or false (F) and put a cross ( ) in the correct box. Then identify the sentence in the text which supports your decision. Write the first four words of this sentence in the space provided. There may be more than one correct answer; write down only one. The first one (0) has been done for you. READING 1 UNIT 03 | See it. Want it. Buy it. The Gruen effect Retail spaces are designed for impulse shopping. When you go to a store looking for socks and come out with a new shirt, it’s only partly your fault. Shops try to look so beautiful, so welcoming, the items displayed in such vast quantity, that the consumer will start buying compulsively. This is the Gruen effect. The Gruen effect is named after Victor Gruen, who was born in Vienna but moved to New York City in 1938, where he made a name for himself designing shops and retail spaces. This was a particular challenge during the late 1930s, when people had no money. They just wouldn’t go into shops. However, Gruen figured out how to get customers inside with amazing window displays. He argued that good design equalled good profits. The more beautiful the displays and surroundings, the longer consumers will want to stay in a shop. The more time shoppers spend in a store, the more they will spend. At that time, the American suburbs lacked what sociologists call ‘third places’. If home is the primary place and work is a second place, then a third place is anywhere else one goes to be around other people – to build community, to hang out, to feel connected. Victor Gruen wanted to give the American suburbs that third place. He imagined designing an indoor plaza which could be an island of connection. Gruen’s solution for America was: the shopping mall. Gruen imagined malls as mixed-use facilities, with apartments, offices, medical centers, child-care facilities and libraries. The malls were a success, but over time, Gruen saw that in erecting these malls, he was draining life from the actual cities. So then he got involved in urban renewal projects. In 1968, Gruen moved from L.A. back to Vienna, back to the greenery and plazas he had been trying to imitate. But he could not escape his own creation. A shopping mall was being built on the edge of town. In Gruen’s mind, Vienna was already perfect; it didn’t need a mall the way the broken American suburbs did. As he saw it, his original vision had been totally misunderstood. Victor Gruen, the mall maker, became the foremost mall critic. But even Victor Gruen couldn’t have predicted the changes that recent years have brought to American malls. Increased online shopping habits and the existence of too many malls have contributed to the ‘death’ of the American mall. It’s been predicted that in the next few years, 25% of malls will close down. According to experts, the malls that survive will be those in prime locations with dining, entertainment and luxury stores. Clearly, action is needed to avoid deserted shops leading to so-called ‘zombie malls’. Key Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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