South Florida shoppers are probably used to heading out to the suburbs when they need to go to a big-box chain store like Best Buy, Target, Home Depot or Walmart. Big-box retailers are more prominent in the suburbs because commercial real estate there is cheap and available, at least when such areas are compared to urban cores.
However, many big chains are now taking a different approach. As more and more young people reverse the trend of fleeing to the suburbs by moving back into urban areas, stores are following suit. Simply put, this is where the growth opportunities are. Many suburbs are either choked with existing locations or saturated with locations of competitors, so downtowns and urban centers across the country are the new frontier.
To adapt to crowded inner-city environments, chains are opening small stores and carrying smaller packages of products, so that consumers don't avoid buying them because they don't want to lug big, heavy items home on a bus or train. Signage and store layouts are being tinkered with so that time-sensitive customers can get in, get what they need and get out easily and quickly.
This is a definite trend, but whether it is really going to hit Florida remains to be seen. Target, for example, has opened city-focused stores in Los Angeles, Chicago, Minneapolis and Seattle, but has not announced any plans to open a similar store in any Florida city.
Regardless of whether a business is opening up in the suburbs or in downtown Orlando, that business' owner is going to need to make sure he or she can find and acquire the proper site. For such a task, an attorney who practices commercial real estate could be a very valuable ally.
Source: The New York Times, "Retailer's Idea: Think Smaller in Urban Push," Stephanie Clifford, July 25, 2012
No Comments
Leave a comment