Jürgen Winklbauer, Managing Director of Panattoni Austria talked to Property Forum about the current situation in the Austrian warehouse market, the plausible directions of its development and the growing importance of photovoltaics.

Dr. Angelus Bernreuther, Head of Investor Relationship Management at Kaufland talked to Property Forum about the key drivers of retail, the increasingly important role of digitalization and also shared the company’s expansion strategy for the CEE region.

The boundary between online and offline shopping is becoming increasingly vague. There is an evident retail trade trend toward the omnichannel, i.e. combining various sales channels tailored to the consumer's individual needs. This requires the development of e-commerce which has significantly accelerated recently. In the last 5 years, the share of online sales in Central and Eastern Europe grew by 9 pps to 15%, and in 4 years' time is bound to amount to 20%, according to CBRE's forecasts. Poland and Czechia are leaders in terms of online shopping growth in the region. E-commerce's market share in these countries in 2026 may be as high as almost a quarter.

Following the completion of the mandatory offer by CPI Property Group in relation to S Immo, the Supervisory Board and the acting Chairman of the Management Board, Dr. Bruno Ettenauer, have mutually agreed that Mr. Ettenauer's Management Board contract terminated at the end of 6 September 2022.

Horațiu Florescu, Chairman & CEO of Knight Frank Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Greece & Serbia spoke to Property Forum about the emphasis on the hybrid concept in the local real estate market and Romania's ability to attract more institutional real estate investors.

Mark Richardson, Director, Head of Industrial and Investment Services at Colliers talked to Property Forum about the impact of the war in Ukraine on the CEE investment market, expected changes in the warehousing sector and the further development of PRS products in Poland and the Czech Republic.

What to invest in during times of uncertainty, war, rampant inflation and soaring interest rates? Avison Young presented its CEE commercial real estate investment market overview after the first half of 2022.

High inflation and rising interest rates pose a threat to the upturn in the economy which many expected following the pandemic. Dieter Knittel, Managing Director, Head of CEE at Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (pbb) talked to Property Forum about financing trends and shared his expectations for the upcoming period.

In the first half of the year, investors were as eager to locate capital in Central and Eastern Europe as in Western real estate markets. However, global economic changes and the uncertainty they bring mean that investment decisions are now more and more often withheld. According to Walter Herz advisers, the annual results may not be as good as the six-month results.

Around 120,000 sqm of retail projects are slated for delivery in the second half of 2022, although some projects could be delayed until the first part of 2023, especially if the developers meet certain difficulties with the construction or leasing process, according to real estate consultancy Colliers.