The decline of the Mills Corporation…what happened? Huge mall kid growing up and the decline of malls is a current obsession of mine. Mills Corp had some of the most visually stunning, fun, and unique malls to shop in and a former Mills mall (my all-time favorite mall) just permanently closed a few months ago. I’ve been scouring the internet trying to figure out what caused their decline and eventual bankruptcy, but can’t seem to find direct causes.