Cox Castle’s Villalpando: Pandemic Has Accelerated Retail’s Evolution 

“When it comes to the world of retail development, many agree that the pandemic has accelerated the evolution of retail, perhaps for the better,” writes Daniel J. Villalpando, partner with Cox, Castle & Nicholson. “The good news is that brick-and-mortar retail has survived, and many in the industry expect consumers to return with a vengeance once the pandemic is under control.” 

He adds, though, “Of course, when that will occur remains ‘the million dollar question.’ Until then, retail developers will continue to be forced to adapt, by working with their tenants to keep them open and transforming their projects to deal with whatever the immediate future brings.”  

Naturally, in some cases that means negotiating early lease terminations with struggling tenants who most likely won’t be turning things around. The goal is “to remerchandise with better tenants and higher rents.” 

The uncertain timeline of the pandemic isn’t the only circumstance that retailers and owner/developers have had to deal with. For example, Villalpando writes, consumers are becoming more aware of “sustainable shopping,” and a result “expressing curiosity about what a product is made out of, where it is made and what they can do with it when they have finished. As a result, many retailers have been forced to obtain answers to these important questions, and to be transparent with that information with their customers.” 

Villalpando’s article is part of Cox Castle’s 2022 forecast of the outlook for both the retail and office sectors.