The trade sector, greatly weakened by the pandemic, has gained a new investment niche. This year, the increased activity of investors, now mainly focused on the construction of retail parks and convenience centres, will result in the largest growth of these facilities in the history of the Polish market.

Polish developer Scallier has delivered its first retail park in Romania and has a pipeline of new retail projects in the country.  

Retail began to transform well before the COVID-19 pandemic. It has, however, evolved a lot faster than expected and the pandemic has created a whole new environment that all market participants have to learn to navigate. Cushman & Wakefield has issued its latest report “Is Confidence Returning to the Retail Market?” highlighting what the retail market looks like from the perspective of tenants, landlords and customers.

The first modern regional shopping centre in Prešov, the third biggest city in Slovakia, is opening a second stage on 23 September. JTRE’s expanded EPERIA Shopping Mall will include new fashion brands, restaurants, and a multiplex cinema, with the retail area increasing by 50%.  The shopping centre will provide visitors with a wide range of customer services, more parking spaces, and new indoor and outdoor relaxation zones.

Pasaż Warmiński in Lidzbark Warmiński has changed its owner. The transaction is announced by the LCP group, which has acquired another project for its "convenience retail" portfolio.

Cushman & Wakefield Echinox says it will provide consulting services in construction for the extension of Colosseum Mall, a Bucharest-based project with a total area of 21,616 sqm. 

Although the Polish retail market is still struggling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, forecasts for the sector are more optimistic than for the rest of Europe. According to Oxford Economics, retail sales in Poland are expected to grow by 4.9% per annum until 2023, which would put Poland in a leading position in Europe. 2021 is expected to see approximately 209,000 sqm of GLA solely in retail parks come onto the market, meaning that 2021 would be a record breaking year for retail parks in terms of space delivered to the market. JLL and Trei Real Estate Poland, the authors of the 2nd edition of the "Retail parks and convenience centers in Poland" report, summarize the market regarding these projects at the end of H1 2021, and outline the development prospects for this sector in Poland.

Scallier says it will officially open in late September its retail park in Roșiorii de Vede, a small city in southern Romania. 

Etele Plaza is going to open its doors to the public at 10 AM on September 17, 2021. Budapest’s latest shopping and entertainment centre located in the immediate vicinity of Etele square, Kelenföld will offer a range of stores and services. Futureal’s €300 million development is also the first smart shopping centre in Hungary.

Shoppers are becoming increasingly conscious and are looking for easily accessible, environmentally friendly shopping centres that also have outdoor green areas, a representative survey called "The role of shopping centres in the 21th century" by Westend and Marketing Resolution found. The survey examined the customer habits of people living in Budapest and its suburbs, including how often they visited their favourite malls, what experiences they were looking for there or what products were in highest demand.