Insights Hub

Recently, we were fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to host a Lunch and Learn session with employees at British Land, where we shared our latest research on retail occupancy and vacancy trends.

LDC Senior Business Development Manager Katie Girdwood, Head of Insight & Analytics Ronald Nyakairu and Data Analyst Hayley Kennedy discussed our findings on the most prevalent retail trends of today. They analysed vacancy figures; redevelopment activity across the market, particularly across shopping centres and former department store units. They explored brand acquisition activity across different retail formats; and the impact of business rates changes on unit occupancy, to name just a selection of the insights shared.

We were joined by Edge Analytics, who presented a case study on Westwood Retail Park in Thanet, using their cutting-edge housing and population data to forecast future retail demand.

We then opened up the floor to some excellent questions, including:

• Is there any indication that the current net openings vs closures trends will continue into 2023?
• Are we seeing any correlation between vacancy rates and new housing developments?
• Can we break long-term vacancies down by location type and region?
• Which brands are driving the increase in ice cream parlours— are they traditional chains or new concepts?
• Can we split department store reoccupation figures by location type?
• Looking at the multiples vs independents figures, could the current uptick in independent units slow or even reverse?
• How can we observe the rate of net change by business type?
  
  

“We have established a long-standing partnership with the LDC team and their data is a key component of British Land’s decision-making processes, helping us to deliver best in sector insight tools, data and reporting. LDC data gives us a fantastic live picture of the retail occupancy landscape and allows us to benchmark our assets to the market.

The Lunch & Learn session informed our Real Estate teams with an up-to-date view of the capabilities of LDC’s data, showcasing how it can enhance leasing decision making. Over 80 people attended and was very well received across the business. It was a pleasure to have the team deliver a session that sparked insightful discussions and requests to use the data in additional areas for commercial decision making.”

- Natasha Osei-Ababio, Insight Reporting Analyst at British Land

“It’s been a pleasure to work so closely with British Land over the last few years, understanding their unique challenges and objectives as the retail and leisure market continues to evolve. It was a great opportunity to be invited to host a Lunch and Learn session with the wider business to speak more broadly about emerging market trends, the impact of economic headwinds  and the overall performance of the physical retail and leisure landscape.

It’s great to see British Land being so proactive in bringing LDC’s evidence-based insight to the forefront of broader business units. It perfectly demonstrates how it’s more important than ever to use accurate, real-time market data to support long-term strategic decision-making.”

- Katie Girdwood, Senior Business Development Manager

Thank you to Natasha Osei-Ababio and Jon Dewhurst for organising the event. We always value the opportunity to share and discuss our research with the people who engage with our data— if you would like to learn more about hosting a session like this, please get in touch at team@localdatacompany.com