Over the past year, Colliers Real Estate Management Services has published a series of reports to provide our clients with unique insights on the recovery of office, retail, and industrial assets.
Friends, Not Foes: The unification of e-commerce with brick and mortar and the impact on retail real estate is the fourth installment in our series on retail recovery. Key takeaways were drawn after we surveyed a diverse array of tenants across our 11 million square foot national retail portfolio.
Key takeaways:
- National retail vacancy is expected to see a slight decrease of less than 1% by 2024, with growth in e-commerce unlikely to significantly impact the total amount of retail space required.
- E-commerce and brick and mortar retail are no longer mortal enemies. Retailer adaptations throughout the pandemic have shifted the industry away from a “zero sum” forecasting relationship between growth in e-commerce and brick and mortar space needs.
- Omnichannel retail will become less of a choice for retailers and landlords in the future.
- Higher e-commerce sales are leading 55% of retailers to reconfigure their existing physical units and show an increasing need for inventory space.
