Landlords re-lease as department stores downsize Normal text size Advertisement Shopping centre landlords and retailers are undertaking further restructuring in malls to adapt to new shopping habits and how consumers use malls in the post-pandemic era. While tenants such as department stores have shrunk stores over recent years, there has been a fresh wave of activity to future-proof malls by landlords, allocating space to new tenancies by downsizing areas where space is no longer required. One consideration for landlords is that department stores take an average 20 plus 20-year lease in a mall and can negotiate lower average leases. Smaller stores have shorter leases and are charged higher rents, which make them more attractive for owners.