Shopping centres have various formats – the strip mall, the enclosed mall, the power centre.  Now all these things are coming together in one place in a hybrid format.

 

Lifestyle centres, grocery-anchored shopping centres, power centres, don’t accurately describe how the new consumer is using retail.  The economic and consumer-behaviour trends are shaping the retail landscape.  Value-based retail is being embraced by all socioeconomic classes.  Conspicuous consumption is out of style.  Even those purchasing luxury brands look for value. Discount stores are cleaning up their stores and bringing in higher quality merchandise.  Today, landlords see no contradiction having polar opposites like Costco and Whole Foods in the same plaza.   

 

National chains looking to locate in the densely populated downtown core, not only are rethinking their size, but are less likely to insist on their location based on other anchors.  A storefront too small for a standard restaurant, can house a hybrid restaurant/food store concept. 

 

Retail life spans are getting shorter, and this could make pop-up retail more popular.  In the US, Toys R Us opened 90 pop-up stores for the holiday season.  Pop-ups provide a lot of good market information and is an inexpensive R&D project.

 

Source: The next 10 years by Joel Groover in Dec 2010 SCT (shopping Centers Today)