BURLINGAME, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ChainLinks Retail Advisors is proud to announce the release of the Spring 2011 National Retail Report. This new report, which can be downloaded at http://www.terranomics.com/nationalreport/, details trends impacting retail commercial real estate in more than 40 of the nation’s top markets. “This publication tracks commercial real estate trends like vacancy, lease rates and absorption, as well as other economic indicators like unemployment, projected population growth and housing starts at the local market level for the top U.S. markets,” said Matt Kircher, President of ChainLinks Retail Advisors. “We wanted to put together a publication unlike any other in the commercial real estate industry in terms of the depth and the scope of the data it includes.”
The report includes a comprehensive index of current retailer demand and ChainLinks Power Rankings for the top ten U.S. markets in terms of expected overall health for 2011. According to ChainLinks Research Director, Garrick Brown, “The Washington DC market topped our Power Rankings, not only because of the region’s low unemployment and shopping center vacancy rates, but because of continued high levels of retailer demand.” Among the other U.S. markets to land in ChainLinks’ Power Rankings are the San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, Boston, San Diego, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Seattle and Pittsburgh.
The report also details ongoing trends in retail expansion, bankruptcies, mergers and acquisitions and international growth. It also includes an in-depth analysis of a number of retail sectors, including the grocery sector. "Grocery store wars will be one of the major themes of the coming year,” said Brown. “We are seeing unprecedented growth in this sector from non-unionized players like Walmart and Target, as well as expansion from ethnic-themed and organic grocery chains. But even as these players reach for a piece of a pie that has not grown, we are also seeing drug, dollar and convenience store players boost their grocery offerings. The net result will be that a lot of smaller, unionized chains will be pinched.”
Founded in 1979, ChainLinks is the leading retail real estate advisory services organization in North America serving America's premier retailers, landlords, and investors. We are comprised of privately-owned, entrepreneurial companies in 60+ cities, and 800+ handpicked retail broker specialists.