On a Saturday afternoon, the Coex mall in southern Seoul teemed with people.

They were of different ages, different styles and sexes. But had one thing in common ― they sought a good time at the mall. They would come hand-in-hand, window shop, point at things they liked and go in, or just pass by.

Some would queue in front of popular restaurants, or enjoy a cup of coffee. At the center of the mall is a plaza where rather-unknown buskers would play a tune or two, making people stop for a while and clap along to the rhythm. Some shops would aggressively attract customers with banners such as “50 percent discount” or play loud music. Laughter was in the air.

“I come to the mall more than twice a month. I don’t really buy anything. Most of the times I hang out with my friends, watch a movie and eat something,” said Kim Soo-yeon, a 22-year-old university student.

Some come to spend family time together because the mall is family-friendly, in contrast to the general perception that shopping malls are for youngsters. 

“I come because I can breast-feed and put my baby to nap,” said Kim Hanna, a housewife with an 8-month-old baby. In Coex there are two breast-feeding rooms. “I also love D-Cube City in Sindorim-dong of Seoul because there is the Pororo World for kids. You just leave them there for an hour or two and enjoy your time alone dining and window-shopping, problems solved,” she said.

Shopping malls are becoming a site for tourists, too. “We went to Myeong-dong, the most foreigner-frequented shopping district in central Seoul, but we really wanted to see what real Koreans do. We wanted to go somewhere different and do what the locals do,” a Chinese tourist who introduced herself as Cindy Chan said.

When market researchers and trend readers are talking about e-commerce, shopping malls have quietly but noticeably taken their fair share of the market. The Coex Mall in southern Seoul and Times Square in western Seoul are seeing 100,000-150,000 visitors every day and about 5 million shoppers a month, respectively, while D-Cube City malls marked a double-digit growth in visitors every year since the opening in 2011.

Some malls serve specific demographics. Seoul I’Park Mall is annexed with Yongsan Train Station, and Goto Mall as well as Central City are linked with the Express Bus Terminal to greet people from all around the country.

The Centum City in Busan has the largest department store Shinsegae as well as shopping facilities that attract not only Koreans but Japanese tourists who visit via ferries.

IFC mall in the finance-central of Yeouido is crowded with office workers during weekdays and receive family visitors during weekends who seek to make the most of spacious parking lots in the high-rise buildings.

While the online world is for generating profits, shopping malls serve as antennae shops, a test bed to observe customer reactions in the field. They target youngsters who spend considerable time at malls, not particularly buying but acquiring and sharing information about trends and products as a whole. This particular form of shopping is labeled as “malling.”

“The reason that we go to a mall is because we want to hear the live feedback from customers. If they sell well, it is great. Even if they don’t it is OK because we are there for research purposes,” a promotor for a luxury brand that opened an antennae shop in a southern Seoul shopping mall said.

And like the 1990s movies “Mallrats” depicting the youths who socialize and spend their time around shopping malls, more and more people go to the mall to do more than just shop.

“My typical day here starts with meeting friends at the caf, eating lunch and watching movies together, then go shopping, but not necessarily to buy something. We sometimes end up grabbing dinner together and buying one or two items,” Kim Soo-yeon said.

“Sometimes you bring your mom and she still finds things to do here, from simple grocery shopping to buying books, sipping good-quality tea and even getting a haircut. Yeah, you could say that it is ‘malling time,’” she said.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)