Latest News | Leasing, Renting Activity in Retail Sector to Strengthen in 2022: Report
Get latest articles and stories on Latest News at LatestLY. Leasing and renting activity in the retail sector is expected to strengthen this year and prime malls and high streets are likely to remain the most sought-after locations, said a joint report by real estate consultancy firm CBRE and industry body CII.
New Delhi, Apr 11 (PTI) Leasing and renting activity in the retail sector is expected to strengthen this year and prime malls and high streets are likely to remain the most sought-after locations, said a joint report by real estate consultancy firm CBRE and industry body CII.
Space demand from QSRs, supermarkets, electronics and consumer durables are expected to sustain while other categories, such as fashion & apparel and beauty, are likely to pick up on pent-up demand, it said.
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"Prime malls and high streets are likely to remain the most sought-after locations, as retailers would try and secure better deals while locating in these malls, while others might look at 'upgrading' to these areas in the hope of securing better deals," said Market Outlook 2022 report.
In 2021, the recovery of the retail sector was hampered by the emergence of the Omicron variant, hence the report expects the "retail construction pipeline to improve over 2021 but remain modest heading into 2022".
"As supply chain issues impact building materials, leading to delayed deliveries and higher overall costs, retail development would remain modest – which in turn would allow even more focus on space productivity," it added.
The report also outlines the partnerships between new-age digital channels and traditional retail brands. Though most of the sales would still be in-store, retailers are expanding their offerings and partnering with direct-to-consumer companies.
"The partnerships are expected to spill over to all categories - we expect restaurants to partner with on-demand delivery applications for dark kitchens or even explore new business models by opening stores meant exclusively for takeaways / developing their own applications to cater to home deliveries," it said.
Now, the stores would be multi-functional and to move beyond 'pure retail' activities and productivity of retail space would be increased with a hybrid between digital and bricks and mortar.
"Stores may actually serve as a solution to supply chain issues - for the final '50 feet', which remains one of the most expensive legs of the logistics process, physical stores would take on greater roles," it said.
As consumers spend more time in retail locations near their homes, they are going to look for a broader and faster range of delivery options for online purchases.
"Stores would make it easier for consumers to return goods, offer refunds and expand return locations – we would see more retail stores equipped with click-and-collect services/serving as last-mile fulfilment hubs," it said.
Anarock Retail COO Pankaj Renjhen said sales and footfalls across most malls have recovered substantially over the last year and more so post the second wave settled.
"Some categories and some malls have seen a recovery of sales going beyond the pre-Covid numbers. So, essentially 2021-22 has seen much higher sales compared to 2020-21," he said.
However, Renjhen added that some sectors, such as cinema/multiplex, have witnessed the slowest recovery.
"Sales across key malls in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore have seen 110 per cent growth compared to FY2019-20 numbers as that would be the best benchmark to compare growth," he said.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)