Introduction
The economic upheaval caused by the war in Ukraine has clearly left its mark on the Austrian retail trade – a sharp rise in inflation, disrupted global supply chains and household budgets negatively affected by the dramatic increase in energy prices have made “busi- ness as usual“ impossible in recent months. With its dependence on the ups and downs in the retail sector, the market for retail space has also been unable to disengage from these developments. But just as boom phases are not really a convincing reason for elation and careless optimism, the current difficult situation should not lead to the opposite effect. Today’s problems were triggered primarily by a singular event, which means there is justified hope that they will not result in a longer crisis - and we can expect a market return to normalcy in the foreseeable future.
Above and beyond the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis, the outlook for the retail property segment is definitely positive: The traditional retail trade has become increasingly successful in making online a value-enhancing part of its overall offering. Nume- rous innovative, international concepts are currently evaluating opportunities for entering the Austrian market and, not least, the steady increase in the population forms a sound basis for structural market growth. Per capita selling space represents another important factor due to its decline to a solid level in recent years. The market will, consequently, again offer attractive opportunities. We cordially invite you to contact our EHL retail and investment team experts and together evaluate how you can best utilise this potential.
Michael Ehlmaier FRICS Managing Partner EHL Immobilien GmbH
Stefan Wernhart MRICS Managing Partner EHL Gewerbeimmobilien GmbH
Mario Schwaiger Head of Retail EHL Gewerbeimmobilien GmbH
Alexandra Bauer MRICS Head of Market Research EHL Gewerbeimmobilien GmbH
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