Retailers capitalise on stand-alone space

Retailers capitalise on stand-alone spaceA strong market and high volume of lease renewals has maintained low vacancy rates within NSW’s established homemaker centres, says CBRE.The limited supply of large format retail space in the state is prompting retailers to look at alternative sites outside of homemaker centres.According to CBRE’s associate director Shane Cook, that the current high demand for space was being driven by “increased retail spending, underpinned by lower interest rates, the booming housing market and the resultant ‘wealth effect’.””We are finding retailers are focusing on expanding into key large format retail strips, located on main arterial roads, typically standalone sites,” Cook says.A new CBRE report suggests that further support for the sector will be provided through housing commencements, which are likely to jump over the ,000 mark in NSW in 2015 – more than double the level of commencements seen in recent years.CBRE believes this will drive higher consumer demand for large format retail products, underpinning the sector’s continued strong performance.