The Ghosts of Retail: Inside the Sad Decline of Shreveport-Bossier City Malls

The days of the shopping mall are long behind us in Shreveport-Bossier. The two cities feel haunted by the ghosts of what were once-bustling shopping centers that stand as statues of a changing era. Between the Mall St. Vincent, Pierre Bossier, and the Louisiana Boardwalk, a common story of decline, decay, and uncertainty defines the local mall experience.

Pierre Bossier Mall & Louisiana Boardwalk: From Boom to Bust

Pierre Bossier Mall was a cornerstone of Bossier City's economy for decades. At one point, Pierre Bossier was one of the few malls to increase sales when the industry first began to see a decline. Since then, the mall has suffered from the loss of anchor stores and major retailers like Sears and GameStop.

The only other shopping center to increase sales alongside Pierre Bossier was the Louisiana Boardwalk, which had a successful launch over 20 years ago. In two decades, the Louisiana Boardwalk has gone from being one of the biggest attractions in the area to a forgotten husk. Bossier City officials have demanded answers several times from the property owners as to why the riverwalk outlet has been neglected since 2020.

Mall St. Vincent: A Spiraling Saga

Over in Shreveport, there's only one mall still standing and in business, and they've been dealing with a lot of business (but not the kind that keeps the lights on). The Mall St. Vincent has the same story as Bossier's malls, a popular shopping hub for ages that watched its biggest retailers close up shop and felt the pain. In August of 2025, MSV found itself caught in a whirlwind.

It started when MSV announced they'd been handed over to new ownership, then not too soon after, local artists put the new management on blast for asking to commission artwork in exchange for exposure. During that debacle, another started when locals called out the poor condition of many of the mall's turtles from the pond. A local reptile conservator was able to rehome the turtles, but then another confusing thing happened for the MSV.

An Uncertain Future Amidst Unanswered Questions

Recent reporting found that the original announcement of new ownership had been quietly changed to remove the mention of owners, only implying new management. Whether it was an honest mistake or something else is up for speculation, but what is for sure is that MSV doesn't seem to be returning to its glory days anytime soon.