MAPIC 2013:The West Midlands has doubled its retail market share, grabbing 14% of all UK retail deals done so far this year.
Led by Birmingham, and boosted by a 14,000 sq ft letting to a 99p store on the High Street, the West Midlands became the strongest UK retail region in the 12 months to the end of September, according to data from Estates Gazette Retail Research.
It increased its share of deals done by 7.5%, putting it and head and shoulders above the competition. Its nearest contender, Wales, grew by just over 2%.
This is against a backdrop of decreasing retail rents, which continued to fall in Q3, and lease lengths, which shrunk further.
Average rents dropped £20 per annum when compared with the same period last year to £41,337 and leases shrunk from 9.23 years to 8.95 years.
The South West bore the brunt of the drop with its market share shrinking 3.7%.
Besides the West Midlands, only Scotland and the South East’s share of deals broke through to double-digit figures, although compared to last year growth in both regions was at a virtual standstill.
Click on the buttons in the interactive graph below to change the view between 2012, 2013 and to see the y-o-y drop. Hover over the bars to see absolute values.
nadia.elghamry@estatesgazette.com
