Ten per cent less retail space in 15 years

Catella Research forecasts a drop in sales area in European retail of around ten per cent by 2030. There is currently around 590 mio m² of retail space in the EU-28. Market researchers argue that technological innovations and the increasing social influence of digital natives will vastly change the definition of shopping by 2030. Customer orientation, transparency, festivalisation and "shopping in passing" will be the main areas of focus in the future according to Catella's analysts in the current Market Tracker June 2016.
The analysis states that sophisticated stores with a high level of retail space per head and relatively low sales productivity, for example Germany with 1.46 m², the Netherlands with 1.62 m² or Austria with 1.74 m², have a relatively high risk of shrinking. In particular retail parks and discounters in areas which are not integrated will be hit by this decline.