I thought the 'mall smell' was just nostalgia until I visited the old Northgate Plaza
Turns out that specific mix of stale popcorn, floor wax, and old carpet is actually from a cleaning chemical they used everywhere in the 80s. A retired janitor I met there said they called it 'Sunshine Mist' and it came in big blue drums. Anyone else run into a specific smell that tells you a mall is from a certain era?