Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/231459
ties for new development and redevelopment are on the horizon, both in the suburbs and in particular urban in-fill areas. Such a forecast suggests that developers and owners are ready to start making real investments in human capital across all sectors of the shopping center industry, from leasing and management, to acquisitions, development, design and construction. Our job as search professionals is to provide our clients with a link to the most-qualified individuals, people who could best fill those new roles and perpetuate further growth. As the job market within our industry begins to finally approach equilibrium in the coming months, the demand for top talent will once again become a key component to a company's growth trajectory. The expected expansion in the hiring market means the days of merely posting an ad for a job and expecting an endless supply of qualified applicants are over. A much more targeted and thoughtful approach will be needed, utilizing both old-school (networking) and new-school (social media) techniques to attract the right candidates. As this change becomes an actual trend, companies will continue to face the challenge of ensuring they have the right people for today's marketplace, but they will also need to focus on building organizations that are poised to thrive during the next sustained period of growth. 38 SCT / J a n u a r y 2 0 1 4 If we look hard enough, there is enough untapped shopper spend for strong management to largely offset the effects of recession on sales. —Ken Gunn, FSP retail Ken Gunn, Director of Europe and Development FSP Retail High Wycombe, England Predicting the future is never easy. Planning is essential, of course, but as forecasts are rarely accurate, the most reliable outlook is often the one we can see just ahead. At FSP we are more optimistic about the future of retailing than we have been for many years. This may seem bold, with vacancy rates persistently high, retailers continuing to fail and many doomsayers still predicting a technology-driven end of the retailing world, but the evidence is out there. For starters, economic growth remains subdued, but sales have not collapsed. In fact, if we look hard enough, there is enough untapped shopper spend for strong management to largely offset the effects of recession on sales. The consolidation of retailer portfolios, in par- ticular, means that some markets with high population densities, such as the suburbs of London, Paris or Milan, now have rather weak shopping center offers. This is providing investors with some real opportunities. However, the polarization of consumers into those seeking moreupscale experiences and, at the other end, hyper-value seekers will continue to cause problems for those retailers and shopping centers left stranded in the much-slimmed-down middle ground. Fortunately, the number of retailers expanding internationally continues to gather pace, not just in capitals, but also in regional cities such as Marseille, France, where planned developments such as Les Terrasses du Port are attracting a cross section of international brands, including H&M;, Desigual, Bose, Ted Baker and Hugo Boss. Other retailers expanding elsewhere include Primark, T.K.Maxx, Cath Kidston, The Entertainer and Massimo Dutti. With Blackstone acquiring Franciacorta Outlet Village, in Italy, and European investment fund Meyer Bergman buying retail property in Madrid, there are signs that foreign investment is returning to Southern Europe, in particular. Over the next 12 to 18 months, FSP expects other Eurozone countries to benefit as in-