ABSTRACT
Beginning in the late 1970s there has been a major development in US retailing: the factory outlet/off-price shopping centre. The origins can be traced back to where manufacturers operated factory site stores for employees; later there was a change in location and customers, particularly in the grouping of outlet stores to form shopping centres. This clustering is very recent. This paper examines the reasons for growth, the types and size of centres, market segments served, the geography of centres and their future. Whether these outlet centres are creatures of recession and will fade as the US economy improves or whether this is a significant trend in retailing remains to be seen.
