Closure of retail space is forcing developers to re-imagine the mall

BURNABY (NEWS 1130) – There has been a bizarre trend moving its way across the US as more store space is vanishing as some chains struggle to keep customers walking into their establishment.

There are reports at least 94 million square feet of retail space has disappeared in the US so far this year, but some say the same thing isn’t happening on this side of the border.

In this NEWS 1130 follow-up, one analyst weighs in on how empty real estate here is actually being used.

Brad Westerop, who’s a retail advisor for Colliers International, says many malls are redeveloping to include residential towers or hotel space to go along with retail like Oakridge Centre in Vancouver or Brentwood in Burnaby.

“I think a lot of the vacant retail real estate provides a pretty good opportunity for the developers and the community.”

He adds there has traditionally been a lot of under-utilized space at malls that are perfect for increasing density.

“I think it’s just a better use overall and I think it will kind of shape the way we tenants in the retail space too. Now, what we’re doing is we’re realizing we want that hub and we want to live near that hub instead of driving to that hub and that’s where these malls like Lansdowne has a massive parking lot or Richmond Centre — they have all this space to develop.”

Retail analyst David Ian Gray with DIG360 in Vancouver says word of this so-called retail apocalypse is a myth.

“Physical retail is not dead, it’s just undergoing tremendous transformation. Where we stores closing, in many cases it’s in markets that are ‘overstored’ and there’s too much competition for what the demand is.”

Gray adds the demand is there, it is just a reduction but not as much as what is being seen south of the border, which has much more physical retail space per capita than Canada and has had a tougher time recovering from the recession a decade ago.

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