Raise the Rent, Lose the Mall

The third floor of this mall was a ghost town when it first opened.

I was the first to sign a lease. I toughed it out for two years and built up the entire floor's traffic.

On weekends, the lines stretched all the way to the elevator.

When it came time to renew, the property manager handed me the contract with a smile.

The rent had gone up forty percent.

I said it was too high. Could we negotiate?

He leaned back in his chair. "Think it's expensive? The bubble tea chain next door is offering double what you pay."

"If you weren't sitting on this spot, they would've signed already."