That just doesn't sound right. I have never been a mall person: don't like them and avoid them. But I have been to them when necessary.This ruling should be tossed. Malls are on their way out as more and more people shop online.
I don't shop much online. I go to downtown shopping areas to shop, or local shopping areas. Just hate malls, always have. However, it seems to me people go to malls for more than just shopping. They provide a day of entertainment for some people, especially women and kids: shopping, eating, movies, hair dressers and manicurists, coffee shops, and so on.
I think the problem is probably the economy and that the people running the malls need to adapt to changing times by developing more businesses in the malls that appeal to those who are looking for spending the whole day there doing more than just shopping.
When it's hot, you can spend the day there in air conditioned comfort. When it's cold or wet, you can get away from the unpleasant weather in a controled climate.
That tea shop doesn't sound like a very good bet anyway. And, no business should be forced to keep a shop open to help the other businesses in the mall stay afloat.
I live in a small town with a population of less than 6,000 people. We’re so small we don’t even have a mall. What we do have is a vibrant downtown core of small shops but the shopping is really limited. There is one women's clothing store. Other than Giant Tiger, and a work wear store, there is nothing for men. Nothing for kids either.
I moved here from downtown Toronto where I could find anything I wanted to buy within a few blocks from home without patronizing a mall. Now I do a lot of shopping online, which I never did before I moved here.
The US downtowns have been hollowed out by big box discount retailers like Walmart who cut prices until downtown stores lost business and were forced to close. Those who choose not to buy their crappy foreign made goods, are going online. Now Walmart stores are closing due to lack of sales.