Stock of modern retail spaces to hit record 4.5 mln sqm in Romania by end-2024, CBRE report says

The stock of modern retail spaces will overpass 4.5 million sqm by the end of 2024, setting a new record for Romania, according to a report by CBRE, the real estate consultancy market leader. Around 186,000 sqm could be added to the country’s modern retail stock if under-construction projects are considered.

According to CBRE’s Romania Retail Destinations 2024 report, the major Romanian cities surveyed will attract approximately 185,000 sqm in different construction or planning stages in the following period. The largest shares of new supply are located in Bucharest or its proximity, followed by Iasi, Cluj, Brasov, and Timisoara.

“The popularity of the specialized format is noticed in the forecasted developments, claiming 95% of the future new supply, and when looking exclusively at the under-construction units, retail park is the predominant format to be developed nationwide. Pitesti city is the recipient of the main project in the pipeline and set to be brought on the market this month, respectively Arges Mall, a 52,100 sqm GLA (gross leasable area) concept developed by Prime Kapital,” CBRE Romania said.

According to the company, Romania maintains its position as an attractive market for international retailers due to several advantages such as increasing purchasing power, retail spending growing rates, a constant appetite for new brands, an educated workforce, and a very low vacancy rate (below 3% on average) for the existing spaces.

Carmen Ravon, Head of Retail Occupiers at CBRE, commented: “Whether the modern stock of retail space will exceed a new perceptual threshold could sound impressive, but it is not enough, as many international retailers are interested in entering the Romanian market, and the demand for large areas has been increasing. 2024 is another dynamic year from a commercial point of view, considering the brands that have already opened or announced their intention to open locations in Romania, names such as KIKO Milano or Happy Restaurants, and more to come from sports, convenience, fashion, and beauty sectors.”

In terms of total existing retail stock, Bucharest ranks first with 1.25 million sqm, followed by Timisoara (218,800 sqm), Constanta (183,600 sqm), Brasov (181,000 sqm), and Craiova (175,000 sqm). Although the purchasing power of Cluj’s inhabitants ranks 3rd after Bucharest and Timisoara, the city fell out of the top 5 cities in terms of modern retail stock by not delivering new supply since 2022, when it recorded 157,600 sqm, the report noted.

Meanwhile, Cluj-Napoca has the highest prime rent for shopping centres, of EUR 70/sqm/month, after Bucharest, which reaches the threshold of EUR 80/sqm/month. Iasi, Timisoara, and Constanta report values of EUR 60-65/sqm/month, while the rest of the analyzed cities are at EUR 45/sqm/month.