More than 60% of all new retail scheme proposals have been pushed back to the next decade, owing to an increasing crisis of confidence in bricks-and-mortar retail.
Valuations in the sector have come under severe scrutiny since last year. The investment slowdown, the explosion of retail insolvencies and failures, and the relentless onward march of online spend have created the conditions in which there is real trepidation over building out new stock.
Despite that, additions to existing shopping centres will account for almost 4.5m sq ft over the next three years, proving that developers are still happy to create additional retail and leisure space in prime destinations.
Overall, 18.2m sq ft is in the pipeline and set to be delivered by the end of 2020, with a full pipeline reaching 26.1m sq ft by the end of 2022. Developers are seemingly targeting the South East and London, which accommodates one-third of the total pipeline.
Applications for brand-new retail parks bounced again to the highest peak since 2016 after a lull in 2017, proving that the town centre first initiative introduced by the NPPF in 2012 to safeguard town centres seemingly hasn’t worked. Data shows that retail park proposals are more likely to get going faster than shopping centres, with no new malls planned for completion this year.
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