Figure 4. Map of Tehran in the 18th century, courtesy of Madanipour
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Sprawl of shopping malls is a recent phenomenon in the history of Tehran. Roots of shopping mall in Tehran dates back to the 1930s. There have been various types of shopping facilities established in Tehran after the Grand Bazaar, including passages, Modern Bazaars, shopping streets, shopping malls and recently built shopping/ entertainment complexes10.
Modernization of Tehran has been parallel to decentralization of bazaar. According to Habibi & Mahmoudi (2017), the sprawl of shopping centers has begun with a single core of Grand Bazaar; and continued by the growing of shopping streets in central districts of Tehran. As (Hamidi, 1997) mentioned, due to economic boom in the late 60s and raise of demands for more commercial space in Bazaar, residential neighborhood surrounding Bazaar were destroyed and mercantile streets started to grow rapidly. This phenomenon is a result of the formation of the economic middle class and its consequent new consumer needs and demands, which led to establishment of first shopping streets in Tehran. The focus of this sprawl has mostly been towards north, including districts 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6. However, it is evident that formation of these spaces in contemporary time follows the growth of the wealthy consumer society mostly towards the same direction (Figure 5).