Shop vacancies on the rise
Cushman & Wakefield reports that more than 10% of UK shops are now available to let or vacant, with sharp differences between regions.
As of February 1, the company’s Retail Availability survey shows 10.7% vacancies overall, up 0.4 percentage points from the previous quarter, when temporary lettings before Christmas boosted the results. However, this latest figure is well below the August 2009 peak of 12.6%.
London remains the most polarised regional market, with availability in the centre of the capital at 7.9% while the suburbs recorded the highest regional figure, at 17.4%. Outer London now has the highest percentage of shop units linked to administration at 5.75%, an increase of 0.4% points in the past three months. Many regional centres in outer London have also been affected by the opening of Westfield London and the expansion and improved retail offering of Brent Cross, Cushman & Wakefield notes.
While prime, high-profile shopping streets in Central London appear immune from the pressures seen elsewhere, more secondary areas continue to suffer. Cushman & Wakefield describes this as a “flight to quality and dominance”.
Overall, the Midlands has seen the highest increase in availability, rising 1.7 points to now stand at 12.1%. Birmingham still has the highest availability in the region, with Nottingham the lowest at 8.7%. This region does, however, have among the lowest vacancy rates in the UK linked to retailer administrations, which Cushman & Wakefield says is evidence that it has now seen the worst impact of the recession on its central retail area.
