With a rent level of €53/sqm/month on Calea Victoriei, the main retail street of the city, Bucharest remains in the top 50 cities analyzed worldwide and in position 46 out of 53 in the EMEA ranking, just behind Warsaw, according to a report by real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
The agency research shows that New York’s Fifth Avenue has reclaimed its position as the world’s most expensive retail street, with average rents of €1.756 sqm/month.
Pegging the Hong Kong dollar to the U.S. dollar has helped Hong Kong maintain a high-ranking position in 2022 in second, with Tsim Sha Tsui at €1,261 sqm/month displacing Causeway Bay as the territory’s representative in the rankings.
In third, Milan’s Via Montenapoleone at €1,212 sqm/month is Europe’s most expensive shopping street for the first time, climbing above New Bond Street in London and Avenue des Champs Élysées in Paris.
”The Cushman & Wakefield global report analyses the high street retail occupied predominantly by luxury brands, a retail segment which managed to quickly recover after the complicated initial stages of the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent restrictions. This positive trend can also be observed in the results reported by the luxury retailers present in Romania, such as Louis Vuitton or Rolex. Unfortunately, Calea Victoriei, the only Romanian commercial street included in the report, probably has the smallest fashion componentin its tenant mix compared with the other analysed European locations. However, considering that Calea Victoriei has become an increasingly popular destination, especially for its high variety of restaurants, cafes or bars, we believe that we will also a development of the fashion segment in the coming period,” said Dana Radoveneanu, Head of Retail Agency Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
Rents across global prime retail destinations declined by 13% on average at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic but have subsequentlyrebounded to just 6% below pre-pandemic levels. Global rental growth over the past year averaged 2%.
Prime rents have rebounded in the region to just 8% below pre-pandemic levels and at the beginning of 2022 the EU region recorded retail sales volumes 4.1% higher relative to levels when Covid-19 first emerged. However, recovery has and will continue to be challenged by inflation, impacting consumer demand and retailers alike, according to the agency.
