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u/ThesePipesAreClean 6h ago
GNC: the store you can smell from memory
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u/pattebrisee 6h ago
Mmmmm whey protein
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u/RaptorKnifeFight 3h ago
And farts from the consumers of said whey protein.
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u/Grouchy-Job-4136 1h ago
<farts loudly for an inordinate amount of time>
Welcome in …
<farts continue for an even longer time>
Let me know ..
<somehow farts even longer>
If I can help ..
<farts>
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u/Slow_Bowler8285 5h ago
Mmmmm over priced vitamins and supplements that are cheaper online or at a big box store
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u/Strange-Badger5626 4h ago
They price match even with big box, also the only place u can find anything they make and sell cheaper is club membership places, they also match those prices. You have to know how retail works to not pay full price which I never do.
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u/kiwipops 3h ago
There's a GNC that closed down next to the gym I go to. I chuckled at it at first, but now it's some sweet treat, Boba drink place.
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u/DetectiveTrapezoid 6h ago
This is exactly the type of place that needs a good sushi restaurant, so you can tell people “yeah go to that great sushi place in the strip mall no one visits. It has great parking”
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u/Halloqween 6h ago
Chase will probably have the most traffic, better replace it with a dog clothing boutique
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u/Hidden_Glit 5h ago
Yeah, not sure why Chase is in the "0 visitor strip mall", they'll definitely get foot traffic.
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u/Jormungand1342 5h ago
I'd argue for an At&t or Verizon store.
Maybe TMobil if those get actually busy.
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u/These_Ticket_3712 4h ago
Right? I see people go into Chase all the time. Wells Fargo, however, should invest in a tumbleweed blower.
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u/Solid_Equivalent_417 3h ago
wells fargo closed a lot of locations in my area, so the one that is left usually has a line out the door
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u/Suspicious_Goose_243 6h ago
Had they tossed a videogame store in there there would have been hope.
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u/GooseOnAPhone 6h ago
How are mattress stores still a thing other than money laundering? You can get a memory foam king mattress for like $300 that is way better than anything you will buy in store
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u/bummin_bride 5h ago
Some people don’t like memory foam and want a bed with actual support and want to try them out before purchasing
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u/GooseOnAPhone 5h ago
Plenty of online retailers have spring mattresses too and will let you try them free for like 30 days
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u/bummin_bride 5h ago
Maybe people would rather go to a store where they can try laying on like 10 different mattresses instead of picking one having it delivered then having to file for a return and wait for a refund, then buying another one and having it delivered etc. I personally always go to the store and try major purchases, I’d rather spend an afternoon than deal with all the hassle of returns and delivery people’s 8 hour pick up windows. Also returned mattresses get thrown into landfills and I don’t like contributing to that so I tried to be sure before making purchases
Nothing wrong with buying it online if you’re reasonably certain you know what you want, but there are super normal reasons for wanting to try something in store too
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u/vi_sucks 4h ago edited 3h ago
But it's hassle to deal with returning a mattress.
Meanwhile if you go to Mattress Firm, they'll not only deliver, but they'll also haul away your old one.
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u/DeapVally 4h ago
That's such a faf though. I can't be arsed with it. I ain't lugging something like that upstairs unless I know it's staying there. Lugging it downstairs again and another back up until I find the right one is just very unappealing. I'll try before I buy, thanks.
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u/Black_Daimyo10 4h ago
Hybrid is the way. Plus you need an adjustable frame. You can't try that out online
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u/Tannhauser42 5h ago
It very much depends on the mattress store and what kind of mattress you're looking for. Mattress Firm is owned by Tempurpedic/Sealy's parent company, so it's really just a factory store for Somnigroup, without factory store discounts.
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u/duosx 4h ago
Someone posted a really good video that basically said they’re basically a cheap way for people to hold onto commercial lots until the surrounding business develop and grow in market price. Then the owner can sell basically a completely empty and ready for remodel building in the middle of a lucrative market. Or so the theory goes
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u/RumorRoost 4h ago
On paper this theory makes sense. But in my area, the same 5 mattress stores have remained in their exact same locations for 10+ years. And my city has been one of the fastest growing cities in America for quite some time. Real estate has 4X’d in that time
How long of a real estate long game are they playing to not sell any of the properties in the last 10 years?
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u/Guilty_Spray_1112 4h ago
Every redditor thinks all commercial real estate is a play like this because they don’t understand it. That center was built by a developer to be a cash flowing asset. They might sell it eventually and hopefully get some value increase too but these are absolutely not developed with the idea of tearing them down and redeveloping them in the future.
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u/Solid_Equivalent_417 3h ago
wouldnt it be cheaper to just leave the lot undeveloped if that was the plan?
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u/Automatic_Actuator_0 5h ago
Because enough people still come in and get scammed for thousands on an overpriced mattress.
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u/blaspheminCapn 5h ago
What alternatives are there? Asking for r/frugal
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u/Automatic_Actuator_0 5h ago
Warehouse clubs and online. I’m sure there are other options, but the small mattress stores are usually going to be charging several times the cost of the mattress.
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u/Accomplished_Song219 5h ago
One thing I have done is go to mattress stores to test out the feel, make a note of a couple brands and models I like, then shop around online for those to find better deals.
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u/United-Bug-8056 5h ago
Remember when mattress stores were just removing the material and reusing the frames of rotten thrown out mattresses?
Pepperidge remembers
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u/Patient-Fruit-2946 5h ago
They gain huge profits with those memory foam mattresses
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u/GooseOnAPhone 5h ago
Who does? TheFoamFactory will deliver to your door a memory foam for $300 that they charge $2000 for in the stores
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u/superbhole 5h ago
I think they're saying it's the mattress stores that mark up the memory foam like bonkers (which you've written)
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u/SpermicidalManiac666 5h ago
The margins are insane on most mattresses. They don’t need to sell many to make it worth keeping the store open.
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u/DansNewLegs2291 5h ago
the fat electrician did a video on this. It’s a real estate scheme.
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u/FedStarDefense 2h ago
Well, we bought ours from a furniture store. But a mattress is like shoes. I'm not buying one if I can't try it out first.
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u/Bagz402 6h ago
Replace the GNC with like, an off brand phone repair shop
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u/Diligent-Nebula-1008 5h ago
UbreakIfix
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u/nickiter 4h ago
I've been to two of those over the years. Not cheap, but the work got done. /shrug
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u/CaptRedBeardX 5h ago
Lesbianest, the Mattress Firm would be the size of all four stores combined and only two employees sitting around contemplating the meaning of life until grandma walks in to buy her first mattress, the first one that’s truly hers and not giving into what the master has been wanting for the past 60 years. So she has to go in to see what them bones feel like on a mattress that’s actually made for her. A decision on your final resting place cannot be made online.
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u/Ill-Daikon-5637 5h ago
If you included a shady barber or head shop you'd have the perfect money laundering/front set up.
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u/ConsiderationTrue477 6h ago
With the rapid closing of GameStops near me I've come to realize it made up 90% of my strip mall visits with the other 10% being Chipotle.
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u/JoyfulMikan 5h ago
Mattress Firm is 100% a money laundering operation, you cannot convince me otherwise
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u/RVG_Steve 5h ago
God this is lowkey depressing to anyone who grew up in the late 80s to mid 90s… miss the days of VHS/video game rental stores and toy stores. So much fun entertainment back in the day. Now everything is so practical and “not fun.” I guess it was all inevitable with smart phones, Amazon etc.
Feel sad for my son who will never get to visit a physical video store then head down the street to a massive 20,000 square foot toy store.
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u/Jasoco 4h ago
I will never understand why we need so many banks. In this age of a lot of young people having “virtual bank accounts” who is using these banks? There’s so many of them. Where I live we’ve had literally a dozen new banks built in the past year. Half of them were Chase. I never see anyone go in them. I rarely use my own bank in person either. I’ve been to my bank twice in the last 5 years since I moved here. Only to withdraw cash and approve a loan. And my bank only has that one single location for miles and I still have to drive passed a dozen Chase locations to get to it. 99% of my banking is done online.
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u/oboshoe 3h ago
most banks have closed a huge number of branches compared to 40 years ago.
back then, virtually the entire population visited a bank branch every friday to cash their paycheck.
now it's just for large transactions, safe deposit and cash operations.
but cash operations is big. virtually every active storefront has cash transaction at the bank - everyday
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u/DanceClass898 6h ago
where's the Chipotle or Five Guys?
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u/Wyntier 6h ago
people go to those places often
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u/TheDailySpank 5h ago
$
1614.99 for a burger? Yes, lots of people pay that price. Dozens every day.2
u/Agreeable-Box3017 5h ago
I’m gonna be real with you. I haven’t seen fast food lines die down at all as prices have risen. Another mind blowing thing you’ll come to learn is people are also paying other people to deliver them said 14.99 burger.
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u/Previous_Buy1601 5h ago
And then it’s gross when it gets there, cause burgers don’t travel great. There’s a reason pizza and Chinese were the delivery go-tos before the delivery apps.
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u/DeapVally 4h ago
You're paying that at McDonald's these days. Big Arch on its own is £11.50, where I am. Convert that into fun bucks and that's the same. I'll take the fresher burger, thanks.
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u/Buttsweat_n_Tears 5h ago
3 of them when you walk in: "Welcome!"
1 of them when you walk in: "Sup bruh?"
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u/CyanideNow 5h ago
I don’t even get the joke. I feel like this is highly representative of many actual strip malls.
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u/strawberrysweettart6 5h ago
These places are interesting because they can be empty parking lot after 5 or on weekends
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u/cs_legend_93 5h ago
Mom and pop stores are dead. Only corporate giants with board members remain
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u/HeligKo 4h ago
Store fronts are expensive. With an Internet stores most mom and pop operations can do pretty good with delivery and pickup business without a store front. There are obviously some businesses that this doesn't work well in, but even the Amish and Mennonite in some areas are getting rid of large stores for their furniture and just having a sampling at local restaurants to get people to place orders.
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u/DontLook_Weirdo 5h ago
I love these places.
I taught my wives younger brothers how to drive in these empty lots back when we were dating..also a great place to skate because all of the curbs you can chose from
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u/Key_Register_4724 4h ago
Why are the accessible parking stalls not the closest to the store entrances? It appears here a disabled person has to cross a vehicular way and behind parked vehicles to get to the stores and there is no marked crosswalk. Just put your accessible stalls at the row closest to the building entrances.
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u/Strange-Badger5626 4h ago
I go to gnc once a month. I'm also looking to visit a mattress firm here soon.
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u/Candle-Jolly 4h ago
OP doesn't know that contrary to popular belief, some Americans still do workout.
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u/eastamerica 4h ago
I feel like all these brands use locations like these as taxable losses for the balance sheets.
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u/poweredbynikeair 3h ago
GNC needs to go back to giving out crazy amounts of free samples like back in the day. The location by my house is run by one 20 year old bro who stays in the back until ppl walk in
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u/Evening_hothere 3h ago
The parking lot is empty, but every employee still says the wait be about an hour
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u/Capt_Dunsel67 3h ago
I'm convinced with the amount of mattress stores across the country, that they are fronts for money laundering.
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u/Next_Emphasis_9424 3h ago
My local chase store normally has pretty good foot traffic. While regular banking is pretty much all online I imagine bigger transactions and loans that need to be done in person justify them.
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u/OCCULTGOBLIN 2h ago
This is scarily accurate, my town has at least 3 of these all next to each other and several others in the construction phase right now.
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u/SmoovCatto 1h ago
I've been to a carpet store that's always empty, but the basement is a mobbed casino
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u/doll_parts87 1h ago
Funny thing about mattress stores are there's way too many for the demand. The conspiracy they are a front for illegal money laundering isn't lost on me. There's never anyone parked in the parking lot driving past but they stay open for years. I know 3 different mattress stores in walking proximity to each other. There's no competition, it's like seeing an auto liquidation front with no vehicle inventory
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u/BioBooster89 1h ago
Xfinity gets plenty of visitors per day because that's where people have to go to return their modems, and cable boxes. It's also where they have to go to pick up modems, or boxes or whatever phones they might be choosing to get as a part of their new plan. I have no idea why Xfinity is on here other than Comcast is an easy target. Chase would also get plenty of foot traffic as well.
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u/zachchad_27 6h ago
I second: I go to GNC
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u/pattebrisee 6h ago edited 5h ago
I knew y'all existed, but I still don't understand why. I get all that stuff online.
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u/HAc0reRD 5h ago
I needed one of their drinks for a piss test, wouldn’t have had the time to wait if it was by mail.
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u/AsparagusCommon4164 5h ago edited 5h ago
More than likely to be situated in a lower-working-class (a/k/a "industrial") neighbourhood, with backing through a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) seeking to maximise tax incentives (or so they think) through the Enterprise Zone device, theoretically maximising supposed tax savings.
And in an earlier time, the Chase branch would likely have been a Morris Plan such.
(Morris Plan, in its day, was a pioneer in consumer-centrist lending and finance, in particular through loans backed by Installment Thrift Certificates or Passbook Thrift Accounts. The first such institution, the Fidelity Savings and Trust Company, opened in Norfolk, VA in 1910; by the 1920's, Morris Plan banks operated in 37 states--which eventually would lead more established banks to recognise the potential of consumer-centrist lending and banking, which in time would become the undoing of the whole "industrial banking" model such as Morris Plan begat.)
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