Background and Location
Universal Mall is a mall in Warren, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, Michigan, located in Macomb County. The mall is located at the intersection of 12 Mile Road and Dequindre, convenient to both I-75 and I-696. The mall is considered "dead" as many stores have left, including some anchor stores. Some may speculate that Universal will close, considering that the number of visitors, and the overall quality of the stores, have severely plummeted.
History
Universal City opened in 1965 in the city of Warren, Michigan. Originally, the anchor stores comprised Montgomery Ward, Federals, and Woolworth. Ben Franklin, Cunningham Drugs, and about 50 other stores rounded out the tenant roster. Around 1977, Federals declared bankruptcy and closed all their locations; their store at Universal City was converted to Crowley's. The 1970s also saw the arrival of developement around the mall, including a movie theater, and a large E.J. Korvette department store (now Kmart).
In the early 1970s, Oakland Mall opened in nearby Troy. This mall, featuring Wrigley's Supermarket, S. S. Kresge, and Hudson's, was slightly larger than Universal City. Though it proved no threat at first, Oakland Mall would later expand, with Oakland gaining a Sears and a J.C. Penney (and more recently, Barnes & Noble and Steve & Barry's), stealing some of Universal's market over the years.
An eastern wing with a food court, titled the "International Eatery", was added to Universal City in the 1980s, and a western wing with Mervyn's came in 1989. Also in the 1980s, a theatre moved into the mall, with the old theatre nearby becoming a Kroger. The name change to "Universal Mall" came in 1989 with the addition of Mervyn's.
Downfall
Universal Mall continued to hold its own throughout the 1990s, despite increased competition from nearby Oakland Mall and Lakeside Mall. In 1997, the long-established Woolworth dime store chain closed all of its locations, leaving a gaping hole in the mall's Montgomery Ward wing. A year later, Montgomery Ward itself would leave, and the mall's north wing became nearly deserted. The Crowley's store was bought out by Value City and renamed "Crowley's Value City" (later dropping the Crowley's nomenclature entirely), leaving it and Mervyn's as the only anchor stores. As the mall lost its anchors, similarly the chain tenants left. Spencer Gifts, K•B Toys (formerly Circus World), B. Dalton, Hallmark Cards, [[Famous Footwear], The Gap, Zales Jewelers, National Coney Island, Musicland, A & W, and Olga's Kitchen would be among the many stores and restaurants leaving for other malls (mostly Oakland Mall) or disappearing entirely. (Kreme 'N Korn, a food vendor, is perhaps the oldest remaining tenant in the mall.)
Turnaround
However, new management came in the form of Universal Mall Properties, who would give the mall a much needed remodel and cleaning. The mall was so dirty that the mall's new owner's shoes actually stuck to the floor. In September 2001, the new 75,000 square foot Burlington Coat Factory opened for business, occupying the former Woolworth space and several other spaces in the former Montgomery Ward wing. A.J. Wright opened in 2003, taking up the former Ben Franklin space. Since the new management, occupancy has gone above 75%. Although the occupancy rate has increased significantly, most of the stores are independent, mom and pop type stores. Plans are currently underway to develop the former Montgomery Ward space.
Upon the openings of Burlington Coat Factory and A.J. Wright, Universal Mall began airing television commercials on local stations promoting the mall's new changes. The commercials contained statements such as "You'll love Universall Mall". However, the commercials only showed the exterior and brief, blurry flashes of the interior. The commercials did not feature the dècor and the smaller stores of the mall, as if the management of the mall was trying to hide something. Although the commercials seem to generate a false picture of the mall, it is at least showing that the management is trying to rebuild the mall's image.
Mervyn's announced that it would close all of its Michigan operations in 2006. This now leaves Universal Mall without an anchor store on the west end; the small Mervyn's footprint does not allow room for most big box type stores, so filling the vacancy may prove difficult. Mervyn's departure from Michigan may just be the final nail in Universal Mall's coffin.
The Mall Today
Although no longer the prime shopping destination that it once was, Universal Mall continues to function as a viable shopping center. Many businesses have opened on outparcels over the years (including Chase Manhattan Bank, TCF Bank, Huntington Bank, and Kroger), The Cinemark 16 theatre, a second-run theatre, is one of the stronger tenants of the mall. The only remaining chain stores are DEB Shop, Dollar Tree, General Nutrition Center, Fiesta Hair Salon, and Foot Locker.
The mall itself hosts many events - in the summer and spring it hosts the annual Warren Rotary Carnival as well as classic car show to compliment the Woodward Dream Cruise. In addition the mall has children and senior citizen clubs that schedule activities in the mall. Unfortunately, business in the mall has still been slow, and with the nearby area slowly declining, many believe that Universal Mall will never be able to be competitive with the larger shopping centers nearby again.