The rise of e-commerce and changing customer preferences have created a new phenomenon: Dark Stores; that is, online retailers delivering goods within 15 minutes of ordering. During the pandemic and the closure of brick-and-mortar stores, e-commerce reached its peak. Some e-shops saw their sales grow by several tens of percents last year. In connection with this, demand for smaller, centrally located e-shop locations and warehouses with 150 to 500 sqm of space began to grow, especially in larger cities with sufficiently dense housing.

As many as 15 new brands arrived on the Czech retail market in the first six months of this year. Compared with the first halves of the past few years, this is the highest number since 2018, when multiple newcomers were attracted as a result of an outlet centre opening near Prague’s airport. The number of newly arriving brands in the second half of the year has been traditionally higher than in the first half, mainly as a result of the Christmas season. In effect, the number of newcomers this year can be expected to be similar to last year’s 38.

Romanian developer Iulius has opened its first convenience retail project in Miroslava locality, near Iași, following an investment of around €12 million.  

Romania is an attractive market for international retail companies which are interested in leasing large areas, often above 1,500-2,000 sqm, according to a report by real estate consultancy CBRE. Bucharest is the leading city with 66,222 sqm of retail spaces under development, followed byu Craiova, Timișoara and Iași.

Austrian developer Karimpol Group has finished the first stage of the Squarebizz Bory project in Bratislava, which comprises eco-friendly retail storage, service and showroom space within an area of 15,000 sqm. The developer also announced the first tenants who have signed contracts already and the launching of the second phase.

Investors and clients in Poland are focusing on local shopping centres, says advisory firm Walter Herz. 

The year 2021 has recorded over 65,000 sqm of the space in newly completed retail parks. This is the highest growth of the retail space in the Czech Republic in five years. Behind this success, there is mainly the stable interest among shoppers, long-term lease contracts and tenant expansion as also a surge of interest among investors. Nevertheless, the higher costs are now slowing the construction of the new retail parks. Therefore, a boost in the demand for space and likely push up rents as well are expected, states Cushman & Wakefield in their last report.

Zacaria Group, the largest developer of logistics spaces in Sibiu, will open next year a retail park in Cisnădie, Sibiu, following an investment of more than €11 million. 

The retail market in Romania is set to expand by more than 500,000 sqm in the next four years, with 10 of the projects in the pipeline each having more than 10,000 sqm, according to  Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

There are strange dances around the reconstruction of the baroque Savarin Palace in the centre of Prague. The CZK 10 billion project has been approved by the city's conservationists and city councillors and the first phase of the project is already underway, according to the builders. However, the Ministry of Culture has now rejected the project, saying it would threaten the city's conservation area, the Czech News Agency (ČTK) reports. Therefore, Culture Minister Martin Baxa has a request on his desk from the construction company Crestyl to review the decision of his officials, as company spokesman Ondřej Micka confirmed to Property Forum today.