Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/231459
THE COMMON AREA Magic windows Small goes big Shoppers at Westfield San Francisco Centre can now order merchandise on eBay's "connectable glass" digital-touch windows. The online auction site, which is experimenting with omni-channel selling strategies, has installed three 10-foot-by-10-foot screens behind the glass of empty storefronts in the 1.5 millionsquare-foot mall. The screens project high-definition images onto the glass and turn it into a touch screen. After perusing merchandise displayed on the screen, The organizers of Small Business Saturday, which encourages consumers to shop at locally owned brick-and-mortar retailers on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, say the event was a success in 2013. About 70 percent of the respondents to a shoppers may purchase an item by enter- survey conducted jointly this year by ing a phone number; this will generate the National Federation of Indepena text message containing a link to a site dent Business and where they may complete the purchase by American Express smartphone and receive home delivery. said they were aware of Small Special delivery Business Saturday; Amazon.com is developing small, unmanned that is up from 67 aircraft that could someday deliver parcels to percent who said customers in half an hour or less, company so in 2012. Of those respondents, founder Jeff Bezos said during a TV interview. 46 percent shopped on the day. The innovation will require years of developSpending was up; these respondents ment and the approval of the Federal Aviation reported making some $5.7 billion Administration, Bezos said. UPS said it, too, is in purchases at independent merexploring commercial use of such drones. chants, up 4 percent from last year. Grocery-anchored centers slowly recovering: Report Tenant demand is improving the business conditions at U.S. community and neighborhood centers, according to CBRE. The percentage of existing space that landlords are actively marketing for tenant build-out — the "availability rate," as CBRE calls it — at such properties will decline to 10.6 percent in the fourth quarter, the firm is projecting, from 12.3 percent in the third quarter and from 12.7 percent at the end of 2012. "Consumers remain cautious, as the economic recovery has not provided enough confidence for them to spend at an above-average pace," said Abigail Rosenbaum, an economist at CBRE. "This caution has kept retail- 10 SC T / J a n u a r y 2 0 1 4 ers from rapidly expanding, and the demand recovery at retail centers remains muted." CBRE is also projecting that some 8.1 million square feet of new community and neighborhood centers will open in the U.S. this coming year. This relatively low amount of new space will help drive rents up by about 2.5 percent nationwide, on average, the firm says. "Availability rates will trend down in the coming quarters, but it will take some time before significant rent increases can be justified," said Rosenbaum. CBRE predicts that rent growth over the next two years will be led by Austin, Texas; Charlotte, N.C.; Dallas; Denver; Nashville, Tenn.; and San Francisco. SCT