Mark Faithfull of The Robin Report tells his readers that malls have been through the mill: online retail, consumer recessions, retail bankruptcies, political and economic upheavals, the impact of the experience economy, and, let’s not forget the lockdown closures. Faithfull writes:
The argument is simple: malls may not be the income powerhouses they once were but we’re still enduring their pain. Malls have been through the mill: online retail, consumer recessions, retail bankruptcies, political and economic upheavals, the impact of the experience economy, and let’s not forget, the lockdown closures. Having been tossed into the lion’s den, the gladiatorial retailers still standing have proved their worth and are geared up to fight another day.
“Retail investment has taken three big hits. There’s been Covid, the effects of inflation and interest rate changes, and political instability around the world. And retail itself has been through big structural changes as well as sustainability. When you add all that together in the mixer, it’s been a lot for investors.” […]
“But prices are revising, and rental prices have rebased. A lot has happened but now it’s becoming a really interesting market,” he adds. “Polarization has cleaned the market of products that had become pointless. There was too much retail space. We had moved away from the fundamentals of location, proposition and execution. Covid was like the wake up with a hangover.”
He also warned that as transactions begin to return, there will be a temptation for investors to go for the first deals available, and to buy lesser-quality assets at low prices. “Don’t be tempted to buy cheap,” he said.
Read more here.
