“Out is the traditional enclosed mall; in is the so-called lifestyle center with free-standing stores clustered around an open-air plaza, a new study shows.

The rising cost of land in Metro Detroit and changing shoppers’ preferences are reshaping the next generation of stores as they follow people to the outlying suburbs, according to a report by Bieri & Associates Inc., a Detroit-based retail consulting firm.

Retailers such as Banana Republic, Williams-Sonoma and Ann Taylor often prefer to be in outdoor settings where lines of shops and eateries are set along a winding Main Street, said Jim Bieri, president of the company that published the study. … “

> See DetNews: “Retailers bypass malls for ‘lifestyle centers'”
> See my post from December 7 on lifestyle centers