Outlet Sales Looking Good - Value Retail News

COVER STORY
Outlet-centre sales
are looking good
By Linda Humphers
Editor in Chief
Based on the numbers that are
coming in, the outlet retailing
sector is continuing to hold
its own while nations’ economies find
new traction.
For every sector, economic downturns
have often had a way of separating
the wheat from the chaff. The outlet
sector has traditionally been reaping
and harvesting during these periods,
which seem to cycle around every
few years. And so it goes for 2008.
Although some outlet centres are
seeing a decline in footfall, that loss
appears to be browsers who buy very
little rather than core shoppers who
lift the bottom line. In fact, many
European outlet centres have seen
an increase in shoppers, followed by
a nice bump in sales densities.
A survey published in July in the
Journal of Retailing and Consumer
Services indicated that UK outlet
shoppers place more value on wide
choice than on finding their favourite
brand, and they are prepared to travel
some distance for that broad selection.
The survey queried 828 shoppers
at 18 UK outlet centres.
When asked to provide the attributes
that attracted them to outlet centres,
respondents listed, in order of importance,
high-quality goods, deep discounts,
and selection, which perfectly
defines the outlet value equation.
According to the survey, shoppers
are likely to drive past outlet centres
that don’t have their favourite
designer brands.
Here is a snapshot of gains being
made by various outlet portfolios:
INterNatIONal Outlet JOurNal FALL 2008
with a tenancy that includes Mexx, Levi’s, Reebok, Puma, Nike and Adidas rapidly
boosting sales, Fashion House Gdansk will open a 77,560-sf expansion in 2009.
McarthurGlen uK
For the first half of 2008, McArthur-
Glen UK, which operates seven UK
outlets, posted a 3 percent increase in
sales compared to the same period in
2007. The developer credits designer
collections at its centres, located at
Ashford, Bridgend, Cheshire Oaks,
East Midlands, Livingston, Swindon
and York, for driving sales (see page 6
for complete story).
Fashion House
Reports from Fashion House
Outlet Centers in Poland show huge
increases in average weekly footfall
and sales densities. For the period
beginning in March and ending in
July 2008:
n Fashion House Warsaw posted
a 20.6 percent footfall increase and a
13.7 percent sales increase
n Fashion House Sosnowiec posted
a 15.1 percent footfall increase
and 21.4 percent sales increase
n Fashion House Gdansk posted a
20.4 footfall increase and a 4.2 percent
sales increase.
Value retail
In the first six months of 2008,
total sales at Value Retail Plc’s nine
designer villages increased by 20
percent compared to the same period
last year. Also during the first
six months of this year, the average
spend of Value Retail’s visitors
increased by 12 percent, raising the
average spend to over €600.
The company’s strong sales – as evidenced
by a 30 percent increase in taxrefunded
sales – were generated by
shoppers from Russia, the Middle East,
China, India, South East Asia and Brazil
(see page 8 for complete story).
Dalton Park
ING Real Estate’s Dalton Park in
Murton, England posted even sales for
the first half of the year and a footfall
increase for the period of +1 percent. c