Despite a late surge in seasonal shopping which boosted footfall, there was little festive cheer in the European shopping-centre industry in December, says ICSC.
Despite a late surge in seasonal shopping which boosted footfall, there was little festive cheer in the European shopping-centre industry in December, says ICSC.
The growing shrewdness of consumers who now expect ‘January sales’ to begin before the shops shut for Christmas is forcing retailers to work hard to maintain sales volumes. This is happening at the expense of profit margins, according to the International Council of Shopping Center’s monthly Pan European Shopping Centre Executive Opinion Survey known as the ICSC Euro-Shop Index.
Sentiment for the next six months also remains depressed but less so than at the same point in 2012, the survey found. Much of this pessimism is a consequence of the fiscal problems persisting in many European countries. However expectations for the next six months show considerable improvement compared with the same time last year, even though tough economic conditions are expected to continue to plague much of Europe.
Despite the much-debated issue of the impact of e-commerce on bricks and mortar retailing, shopping-centre executives say they are not feeling threatened by the rapid growth in this sector. Not one respondent said that this would be a significant challenge for the industry over the coming 12 months.
