Footfall in ECE’s shopping centers also developed positively in 2023, with an overall increase of 7.4% at all centers compared to the previous year, and a plus of 8.7% in Germany.
At the same time, the terms of the lease contracts concluded have also increased significantly again, as the number of lease contracts with a contract duration of six to more than ten years increased by more than 60 percent compared to the previous year. The average size of space per rental unit also increased again by 12%, as retailers are often looking for larger spaces or are expanding their existing rental space.
“The strong leasing performance and the further significant increase in leases space in our centers, as well as the increased lease durations, are a clear sign that retailers continue to see bricks-and-mortar retail as very relevant and have great confidence in the performance of shopping centers and are therefore investing strongly in their store portfolio,” says Joanna Fisher, CEO of ECE Marketplaces.
The retailers with whom numerous lease contracts were concluded or extended in 2023 include well-known concepts such as H&M, Only, New Yorker, Rituals, TK Maxx or the brands of the Inditex Group such as Zara, Pull&Bear, Bershka, and – with its German premiere in an ECE center – Stradivarius as well as new concepts or concepts represented in the centers for the first time, such as the non-food discounter Pepco or the tattoo studio chain Glorious Art.
Further contracts were also concluded in the gastronomy sector, with casual dining concepts such as Alex, L’Osteria and The Ash, and in the growing non-retail segment, for example with the serviced apartment operator Limehome, the medical services operator CSL Plasma, the innovative education center Tumo, and the spa concept MyWellness, which optimally complement the existing retail mix.
