That’s a lot of time between developments, but perhaps the Ottoman Empire was stingy with building permits. Yet a comparison of the Bazaar and the newest completed mall, Akasya Acibadem on the Asian side of the city shows that in a lot of ways the format – and the shopping culture — remains the same.

Some history: Undoubtedly inspired in some degree by the bazaars of Persia, the Grand Bazaar was built by Sultan Mehmet II in 1455 or so to provide a place to trade textiles. Given Istanbul’s status as the crossroads of the world then, and the gateway to two continents today, it’s not surprising that a substantial marketplace would be built, hosting everyone from Marco Polo to most likely the ancestors of today’s tenants. And I still haven’t figured out who runs it – or if anyone actually does.

The complex grew over centuries, and was built and rebuilt after wars and earthquakes. What it has now is some 3,000 vendors, some of them running the same small stall for generations. Which makes sense, given the labyrinthine layout of the enclosed portion, with side alleys, cut-throughs and wrong turns that have convinced me there is an entire society that has been born in, lived in and never have left the building. There are cafes, police stations, some stunning leather and unique art — and an awful lot of the same Evil Eye and tea set merchandise over and over and over again.

It is confusing, overwhelming and exhausting, particularly for those unused to the bartering culture prevalent here. Merchant after merchant talks as you pass, trying to get attention, and then if they’ve got yours, to make you pay a lot more than your garment, trinket, or rug is worth. Don’t have enough Turkish lira? They take Euro and US Dollars – and probably will accept intergalactic whatevers when the aliens land.

The joy of the Grand Bazaar is that the best merchants find humor in the game, and want you to, as well. They’re not going to get as much for that tea set, rug, whatever as they want, and you’re probably not going to pay rock bottom price. But you’ve built an odd kinship that will continue as you walk in circles and end up passing him (invariably a him) again and again.

A true story:

“Remember me?” says the rug dealer from whom I’d purchased a kilim pillowcase an hour before. “Let me show you this rug – see the color? It’s very unusual to find
purple here.”

“That’s true. It looks lovely, but as I told you I have new carpets and don’t need another,” I replied (and which even was the truth).

“This is small so you wouldn’t put it on the floor,” he counters.

“A wall hanging?” I asked. See how easy it is to get into the game?

“Not really, it’s too big. It’s a perfect prayer mat,” he pitches.

“It is. But I’m a Roman Catholic,” I said. Which stopped the pitch dead with a shrug and a laugh, and we both went on our way.

The Grand Bazaar’s much smaller sibling, the Egyptian Market (also called the Spice Market) is much the same, but naturally with a greater emphasis on food. Want a demonstration of how to judge saffron, a sampling of Turkish Delight or the inevitable tea set? It’s a lot more manageable here. This market also seems to get many more locals.

Akasya, on the other hand, doesn’t do bartering – it’s a modern mall all the way, still in the process of opening. It has 300 retailers, not 3,000, including some of the best local (Beymen, a fashion brand) and a few international retailers (including Crate & Barrel, Victoria’s Secret, Zara and Shake Shack), befitting a project that costs nearly US$500 million. It has a master plan (from a U.S. architecture firm) and foreign investors.

Unlike the single-level, sprawling Grand Bazaar, this project has multiple floors, is flooded with light from multiple terraces and even includes Kidzania, a theme park for children to pretend to be adults. It is a luxury mall for an up-and-coming consumer – many of whom probably live in the apartments that are built right alongside the complex, which also includes a swimming pool and parking. It would be equally at home in Los Angeles, London or Shanghai, though it keeps the curved lines important in this part of the world, and blessedly bans smoking. It speaks international retail. And yes, women sell things.

But in its own way, it’s equally lively, because this center is geared to residents who want to live their daily lives. Women and children abound, picking up life’s necessities. It remembers that at its heart, the shopping place is really a gathering place, an excuse for people, particularly women, to meet in public and be entertained by each other as much as by merchandise.

Both projects have an energy, though, a vitality and an ear for its audience. And if Akasya is really lucky, someone will visit it in 600 years.

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“So why is a New Yorker traveling on a ticket bought in Dubai?” the agent asked me.

“By having the Middle East affiliate of my organization [the International Council of Shopping Centers] purchase it in local money, it saved several thousand dollars,” I said.

“Why were you in Dubai?” he continued.

“To attend a conference on shopping mall development in the Middle East–my organization represents mall developers worldwide,” I answered.

The rest of the interview proceeded apace, and with ticket stamped, I picked up bags to leave the podium. Except for one last question: “So, are the malls in the U.S. all the same like the ones here?”

“Pretty much.”

But that’s not really true, as I’ve discovered after more than 25 years reporting about retail and shopping center development, first around the United States, then around the world for trade publications and web sites.

Don’t laugh — it’s a big business that has created vast fortunes and changed local economies everywhere from Anchorage to Ankara, Singapore to Sydney. Developers have created spectacular projects that serve their residents with style — and architectural blights that have destroyed the fabric of the community.

I’m more interested in the former, because after thousands of articles, blog posts and a couple of trade books, I’ve found that you can learn a lot about a people from the way they shop. After all, we’ve been doing it for thousands of years!

While far too many shopping malls are “all the same,” the best ones do something more. They tell us a lot about about their shoppers: their culture, their current needs, their dreams and aspirations for the future. Some centers are marble-laden palaces for the wealthy; others are in countries with an emerging middle class. And a few more are in regions where a safe, organized place to buy basic needs is revolutionary.

Have I found all 80 malls yet? No, I’m still traveling and discovering — and getting advice from some industry friends. (Thank you, Cushman & Wakefield’s Yvonne Court, Marketing Developments’ Stan Eichelbaum, and Ian Thomas of Thomas Consultants for your counsel and support.)  Come and learn along with me as I tell these stories, one mall at a time.

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