California Centers Magazine serves retailers, developers, shopping center owners, investment sales brokers and tenant representation firms throughout the state of California.
Issue link: https://californiacenters.epubxp.com/i/711240
22 California Centers Magazine | August 2016 C C I t used to be that you went to a shop- ping center to…shop. The concept sounds straightforward enough, but not with today's changing demo- graphics, technologies and consum- er habits. Now, you go to shopping centers to socialize, eat, check out the latest art installation, see a movie and maybe pick up your dry cleaning on the way out. That is, if you don't have your dry cleaning delivered. The rise in food, service-oriented businesses and artisanal products has dramatically altered the tenant mix at many community and neighborhood centers throughout California. What used to be a hodge-podge of hard- and soft-good retailers, mixed in with a chain restaurant or two, must now be all things to all people, it seems. This has caused strip center owners throughout the state to re-evaluate their tenant mixes in an effort to cater to the new consumer. "The key to making our shopping centers stand out is to make sure we have a good mix of services, com- munity-based retailers, great dining options and fair value," says Sandy Sigal, CEO, president and founder of NewMark Merrill, based in Woodland Hills. "With that in mind, we are al- ways looking to make sure we have a mix of about 25 percent to 35 per- cent services, which include fitness, schools, etc.; 30 percent to 50 percent true retail, which includes cloth- ing, electronics, etc.; and 25 percent for both sit-down and quick-service restaurants." RETAIL FEVER One of the top service categories throughout California strip centers is health-related tenants. "Medical and health-related ten- ants, particularly urgent care clinics and fitness centers, are one of the most active tenant categories," says Rick Rivera, president of Centers Business Management (CBM) in Los Angeles. One of the reasons Rivera believes these tenants have become so popular among landlords — outside of the ob- vious service they provide — is their flexibility when it comes to space. "Medical and fitness tenants are less selective about indi- vidual space posi- tioning [than many retail and restau- rant tenants]," he continues. "Medi- cal tenants are also less concerned with locating in heavily retail-focused prop- erties. These tenants are typically more destination-orient- ed." This creates a mu- tually beneficial relationship between medical tenants and other strip center services and restaurants. It is this type of collaboration and cohesion that Rivera believes will make or break a center's new tenant mix as we move further away from strictly retail. "Medical tenants don't depend on 'CROSS' FIT The changing face of today's retail landscape means neighborhood and community centers are now more diverse than ever. By Nellie Day Health and fitness tenants like Orangetheory are popular daily traffic drivers. Health conscious food tenants like Honeyfish Poke (pictured) are springing up at strip centers across the state. Rick Rivera President Centers Business Management