Although the pace of store closures has slowed from its 2019 peak, don’t expect the reprieve to last long, according to a new UBS report that suggests America still has far too much retail space per capita.
At the end of last year, there were 115,000 shopping centers — a figure that includes strip centers, malls, outlet and other lifestyle centers — across the US, compared with 112,000 in 2010 and 90,000 in 2000, UBS found in an analysis using data from the International Council of Shopping Centers.
That equates to about 59 square feet of shopping center space per U.S. household, which is slightly less than 62 square feet in 2010, UBS said. But it’s still well above the 55 square feet of space per household in 2000, and 49 square feet in 1990, analysts Michael Lasser and Jay Sole explained.
UBS is estimating that about 80,000 retail stores, which is 9% of total stores, will shut across the country by 2026. That assumes e-commerce sales rise to represent 27% of total retail sales by then, up from 18% today.
That equates to about 59 square feet of shopping center space per U.S. household, which is slightly less than 62 square feet in 2010, UBS said. But it’s still well above the 55 square feet of space per household in 2000, and 49 square feet in 1990, analysts Michael Lasser and Jay Sole explained.
UBS is estimating that about 80,000 retail stores, which is 9% of total stores, will shut across the country by 2026. That assumes e-commerce sales rise to represent 27% of total retail sales by then, up from 18% today… CNBC
