As many as 11 commercial facilities have been built since January

In the first half of 2020, approx. 130,000 sqm of new retail space were added in Poland, which is as much as forecast for the entire year in the face of the Covid-19 epidemic, according to the latest CBRE report "Market View 1H 2020". 11 new commercial facilities were opened and two were extended. There were little or no delays in the planned openings. We currently have approx. 12.1 million sqm of shopping space in Poland, and by the end of the year there should be 90,000 sqm more. Despite the epidemic, the future of stationary retail looks positive – in May, the footfall of shopping centers reached up to 85 percent of footfall in the corresponding period of 2019.

“The vast majority of newly built facilities are retail parks, where stores can be entered from the parking level. The trend of growing customer interest in purchases in the old formula, and as a result of increased interest of developers in this retail format, was visible even before the epidemic. Now, due to the relatively low capital intensity of investments and the relatively low risk associated with it, it will only get stronger. It will also accelerate the development of synergy between traditional and online sales channels. The epidemic forced shopping centers to search for alternative forms of trade and contact with the customer, thanks to which the infrastructure for online sales and the use of social media are intensively developing,” Magdalena Frątczak, head of the commercial sector at CBRE, said.

Research by CBRE shows that since the re-opening of shopping centers, 6 out of 10 Poles have used the opportunity to visit them at least once.

(WBJ)