The trend towards online shopping has had a significant impact on the commercial retail sector in recent years. Lengthy and repeated lockdowns across the height of the coronavirus pandemic saw more shoppers ditch traditional trolleys for online shopping carts.

People became accustomed to buying everything from clothing to groceries, tech and even houses online, seeing more business trade a physical shopfront for a website and a warehouse to store inventory ready to pick and pack.

Large retail centres took a hit as tenants struggled to afford rent without the foot traffic that once supported reliable levels of trade. But with the worst of the pandemic now behind us and life normalising once more, we’re noting a new retail trend emerging.

A lust for lifestyle is seeing more shoppers supporting those smaller neighbourhood retail centres with a considered mix of tenants. This trend is being led by a desire for lifestyle experiences over convenience.

One project to watch in this space is The Lanes Retail Village in Mermaid Waters. Some 12,500m2 of retail precinct is being built all but next door to Pacific Fair Shopping Centre and the developers are well on the way to filling all of those tenancies.

Described as a ‘vibrant leisure lifestyle destination’, The Lanes will offer an eclectic mix of lively retail laneways interwoven with a fresh food market hall, café culture, leading food and beverage, a medical and wellbeing hub, office space and lakeside community Green.

This trend presents a real opportunity for traditional neighbourhood centres to adapt and revive their trade. Those centres that have become dated can consider what a ‘lifestyle centre’ might look like and what kinds of key tenants will attract people from the local area.

If you are in the commercial retail space or looking for opportunities, reach out to Team Grbcic for a conversation around your goals.