ARTICLES LABELLED WITH TAG report

The Czech retail market once again proved its appeal to retail brands, with 38 new arrivals last year. That is the same figure as in 2021 when the influx of 38 new brands was partly the result of the postponement of some entries due to the pandemic. These numbers represent a roughly 50% increase compared to 2019 (22 brands) and 2020 (25 brands), according to the Cushman & Wakefield analysis of the Czech retail market in 2022.

The concentration of population in rural areas, lower construction standards and less service-driven economy contribute to the divergence between the CEE region and Western European states when it comes to energy consumption structure, reveals Colliers in its recent report.

Recent data from Arnold Investments show that around €152 billion was transacted on the EU real estate investment markets in the first three quarters of 2022. Year-on-year, this represents a decline of around 4% due to a strong first quarter. However, investment activity slowed down sharply in the course of the year. At roughly 39 billion, the transaction volume for the third quarter was around 39% lower than in the previous year. The main EU investment markets analyzed show a significant decline in transaction volumes both over the course of the year and in the third quarter.

How will the current macroeconomic situation affect investment activity and further development within individual sectors, from offices to industrial and logistics complexes to retail real estate? All this is shown in CBRE's latest analysis of the Czech commercial real estate market, which also provides an updated outlook for 2023.

Mindspace, the global provider of flexible boutique office space, has published the results of its global employee survey. The goal of the survey was to illuminate new work patterns and shed light on both current and aspirational employee dynamics. The results gave insights showing how the 9 to 5 job is a dying phenomenon and the hybrid model is here to stay - with employee flexibility being the key determinant in employee satisfaction.

Negotiators of the Council and the European Parliament reached an agreement aimed at taxing imports based on the greenhouse gas emissions needed to make the products, which would extensively cover the imports of construction materials. 

Brno has changed over the past two decades. A total of 635,900 sqm of office space currently exists in the city thanks to the strong growth of companies from the business and IT services and R&D sectors. Brno Spielberg, along with the city centre around Vlněná Street, has become home to companies that create advanced technologies and innovations for global businesses. The city is preparing to expand this space – it will soon add almost 100,000 sqm to the currently unoccupied 70,900 sqm of modern office space, says Colliers in its latest report.

The retail property investment market sector in Poland is thriving, thanks to the stable growth of retail parks (above 5,000 sqm GLA) and convenience retail (retail parks under 5,000 sqm GLA) schemes. Since 2016, 160 assets of this type have been finalized, says Avison Young Poland.

The last two years marked steep growth for the Slovak developer Corwin. With their four new acquisitions, they have grown to be the largest developer in Ljubljana and have sold their flagship project Blumental as one of the largest transactions of the year in Bratislava. In 2022, Corwin also published its first sustainability report.

Despite the still-uncertain geopolitical situation over Poland's southeastern border, the performance of the warehousing sector in the investment and leasing markets gives grounds for optimism. Demand in Q3 2022 amounted to 1.6 million sqm (+11% y/y), indicating that companies are still interested in acquiring new space for development. On the supply side, on the other hand, the new policy of investment financing by banks in the coming quarters will bring the announced cooling down in the construction of new projects. This trend may particularly affect speculatively built warehouses, which at the end of September 2022 accounted for about 52% of the 4 million sqm of space currently under construction. Axi Immo presented data summarizing Q3 2022 in the industrial and logistics market.