Your guide to commercial property | Retail

Although the retail sector has taken a knock during the pandemic, there will – of course – be winners and losers. Many local shops and producers have enjoyed an uplift in sales, as have businesses selling at-home activities, sports equipment, loungewear, technology and even cookware.

The success or failure of a restaurant can often lie with the decisions you make long before the ribbons are cut on opening day. Customer satisfaction is not only shaped by what you’re serving, but where you’re serving it.

It’s no secret that the high street has suffered in recent years. The rise in online shopping has led well-known brands to close stores up and down the country. But as one store closes, another opportunity opens. For many, digital shopping is creating more pathways to success. New entrants are taking market share, and social media is enabling some brands to develop strong brand loyalty with their customers.

Finding the right location is crucial when it comes to the success of a restaurant business. Your ideal location will depend on the type of business you’re launching, and you can work out which spot is right for you by considering the following 10 factors.

Although online retail continues to grow in importance for large parts of the business world, footfall is still the main way that most retailers make their money. Finding the best location for your business means choosing somewhere that will not only get your business seen by the most people but puts you in front of your target audience too.

The UK’s retail industry is one of the UK’s largest in terms of size and value, generating 5% of its total GDP and employing around 9% of the nation’s workforce. Figures from 2018 show that there are 319,000 retail businesses operating in the UK, though it’s estimated that around 50,578 of the country’s retail units are lying vacant, showing that there’s plenty of retail space just waiting for fledgling businesses to snap up.

This is a tricky business, especially if you’re new to the commercial property game. There are far more nuances and technicalities than in a residential lease, and a lot more at stake. There are some key things to bear in mind if you’re going to get favourable terms, which we’ve laid out in this essential guide.

There are specific aspects to be thinking about when it comes to renting retail space, compared to other forms of commercial property. Some of these are to do with the building itself, and the location, others are in the details of the leasing, the negotiations before you sign a lease, and the specific nature of the market.

You can’t afford not to be fastidious about the way you go about finding your retail unit – the property you commit to needs to be reliable and practical.

Finding a retail unit and signing for a lease is half the job. Making your store or cafe or pub look and feel perfect, and, most importantly, match your brand, your personality, is a whole other feat in itself.

As tends to be the case whenever bureaucracy and planning regulations are involved, the classifications for the different types of commercial property are abstruse and a little time-consuming. But they are important.