Retails stores in downtown San Francisco have been leaving the city, with Adidas being the latest to announce its exit.
And on Thursday, an employee at J. Crew said that the store at Centre mall is also closing later this month.
NBC Bay Area reached out to the company for confirmation but have not heard back.
The two stores are the latest in a string of closures with several retailers citing rising crime concerns, and other challenges.
“It’s very quiet, I’m surprised considering it's such a busy area, but it’s a Thursday morning,” said Margaret MacDonagh, visiting from Ireland. “The security was really surprising as well, every store has security.”
That security is easy to spot at stores and around the mall.
“Security was good, everything thing was clean it was nice, nothing, no problems in there. Security's good, we just need the tourists to come back and something better to happen to SF so we can get a better experience coming to the mall now,” said Alam Ramirez of San Francisco.
Earlier this year, Westfield and its partner stopped payments on the property and control of the center was turned over to a new operator. NBC Bay Area reached out to that company but have not heard back.
For those who track business trends and troubles in the Bay Area, the closures are part of a larger struggle.
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“I think this is more speaks to the broader implications of what happens when you see such decline in office occupancy. This isn’t just about vacant storefronts, this is about vacant offices we used to be in this ecosystem,” said Abby Raisz of the Bay Area Council Economic Institute.
Some point out this trend with declining malls began well before the pandemic. The city says there are efforts well underway to revitalize the broader downtown area.
“Diversifying these currently-vacant retail store fronts I think is going to be the real ticket,” said Raisz.
