One of the interesting retail real estate trends I’ve been seeing pick up steam in the last couple of years is the willingness of many retailers to look beyond the traditional mall locations. Many are choosing locations on “hot streets,” bustling avenues within major communities that happen to be the retail hub, or in the downtown/village center area of the market. Prominent examples include streets and neighborhoods like Burlingame Avenue in Burlingame, California just outside of San Francisco, Fillmore Street in San Francisco, downtown Birmingham in Oakland County, Michigan, and the North & Clybourn corridor in Chicago. In this edition of Retail Rap, we examine why hot streets seem to be becoming an increasingly popular option for many retailers.
It seems clear to me that many developers understand the power and potential of great outdoor street retail: hence the growing popularity of open-air lifestyle concepts over the past 10-15 years. Many developers have tried to recreate that bustling social and commercial energy — with varying degrees of success.
The topic of this Retail Rap is my “hot take” on hot streets — what’s yours?