Results of currently completed analysis of shopping centers and hypermarkets called "Shopping Center&Hypermarket 2010" made by INCOMA GfK clearly indicate that the market of shopping centers reported significant slow-down last year. This situation can be observed with all major stakeholders of this market, i.e. investors, developers, operators and retailers on one hand and customers on the other hand. Some shopping centers reported a turnover decrease on the year-to-year basis with some inferior centers facing both increase in number of customers and withdrawal of some tenants.
The expansion has slowed down significantly. Apart from two projects completed in the beginning of spring 2009 in Liberec (Fórum and Plaza), the opening of which in 2009 has been result of certain delay of works rather than the time schedule, only one big shopping center was completed that year – OC Fórum in Ústí nad Labem. Except for this center, extension of Olympia center in Brno, several smaller projects (the inner city Atrium mall in Hradec Králové, retail parks Area Bory in Plzeň, Škodovka in Klatovy) and hypermarkets with small shopping malls the expansion of shopping centers actually stopped in 2009.
In addition, in 2009 historically the first shopping center terminated its activity being transformed to completely different retail concept (Stodůlky shopping centre). If the economy stagnation persists for longer time, this situation may repeat in the future.
Even in 2010 no substantial market recovery can be expected; new projects - with the exception of few ones (e.g. Galerie Harfa in Prague) has been postponed or suspended and developers/investors have been sitting tight with their investments.
We have been witnessing gradual alteration of tenants within some shopping centers, which may lead even to a total change of center focus in accordance with changes of shopping behavior of customers. Currently, we have been also witnessing a process of operator concentration in shopping centers. Chains have been occupying vacant premises at the expense of weaker local tenants; as a result of this development total number of operations in shopping centers increased by more than 4 % to seven thousand retail units but the number of companies operating shops in shopping centers decreased - almost with all assortment groups - altogether by almost 3 %.
The economy stagnation has been also reflected in the shopping behavior of shopping center customers. The extensive customer inquiry within the “Shopping Center&Hypermarket 2010” study indicates that 32 % respondents have reduced their spending in shopping centers to a certain extent and another 29 % have adapted the structure of their shopping in some other way. Some shopping centers, namely Nový Smíchov and Centrum Chodov in Prague and Olympia and Galerie Vaňkovka in Brno have maintained high visit rates. Each of these centers have been visited by around 16 % households from the Czech Republic last year.
If you are interested in more details on the "Shopping Center&Hypermarket 2010", contact please Mgr.František Diviš, INCOMA GfK, tel. 251 117 543, e-mail: divis@incoma.cz