Learn more from the highlights of our latest research.
Navigating Through Change: Resilience and Recovery
The landscape of the OOT market is showing promising signs of stability. In the face of shifting inflation rates, rising costs, and interest rate changes, resilience has been the industry’s hallmark. Our detailed review sheds light on this resilience, highlighting a sector poised for recovery. The rebasing of rents and prices marks a significant milestone, signalling a sector that’s ready to move forward.
Embracing Opportunities
Despite the challenges of 2023 in the retail sector, including CVAs and administrations, their impact on the OOT market has been notably less severe than in previous years, underlining the sector’s robustness and adaptive capabilities.
Leading the Way: Key Players and Emerging Dynamics
Investment Management: The ascendancy of American company Realty Income as a premier investment manager in retail warehousing signifies a shift in the major players investing in the sector.
Retail Parks Leadership: Consistency at the top echelons, with Middlebrook Retail & Leisure Park and Castlepoint Shopping Park maintaining their premier positions as flagship destinations.
Letting and Managing Agents: The continued dominance of Curson Sowerby Partners and Savills in their respective areas reinforces their positions as industry leaders.
A Diverse Landscape: Regional Insights and Market Nuances: Our in-depth analysis extends to the unique market dynamics across the UK. Notably, some regional frontrunners in investment management carve their niche outside the national top twenty, highlighting the distinct characteristics of regional markets.
Retailer Evolution and Market Adaptations: Adapting to Change: Retailers such as Wilko and Argos shed space. Whilst the growth of entities like Pure Gym and Home Bargains signals other retailers are still taking advantage of available floorspace.
Looking Ahead: Promising Prospects
Vacancy Rates and Market Appeal: The downtrend in vacancy rates, now at 5.6% for Q1 2024.
Development Pipeline: Despite a slight contraction in the pipeline for new schemes, the fruition of several projects in 2023 adds floorspace into the market.
In Conclusion: A base to move ahead from
Our 2024 edition of The Definitive Guide to Retail & Leisure Parks offers a deep dive into the sector's present state and potential future, serving as the industry resource to help you navigate out of town retail. Your complimentary copy of the key findings is free to download and subscription options to our in-depth analysis and data can be found at www.definitiveguide.co.uk.
Join us in this ongoing conversation. We appreciate all of your feedback and inquiries as we continue to lead the industry with our out-of-town retail and leisure coverage.