ICSC Research released a report today called The Impact of COVID-19 on the Evolving Use of Retail Real Estate. According to the report:
American retailers and commercial real estate companies express strong confidence that shoppers will visit stores in greater numbers in 2021 — a sign of resilience in an industry beset by the COVID-19 pandemic. After a year in which nearly every aspect of the store and shopping center experience has been modified to adhere to social distancing and other health precautions, retail executives and shopping center operators assert that the crisis is driving a wave of innovation that positions the industry to absorb future shocks.
To handle the sudden surge in click-and-collect shopping as cities locked down in 2020, parking lots became hubs for curbside pickup. As the economy reopened, stores reconfigured their layouts to keep shoppers and employees safe. While the industry looks ahead to the future, retailers and commercial real estate firms say they’ll make targeted investments in digital marketing and online storefronts to keep up with the convergence of online and physical retail.
Results from ICSC’s survey of retail and commercial real estate leaders illustrate how the adoption of technology, shifts in merchandising and operational strategies, and safety precautions put in place during the pandemic will evolve in 2021 and beyond. ICSC’s research affirms that an aggressive omnichannel approach anchored by a store network helped retailers manage through the pandemic. It also affirms that in order to remain relevant and keep customers coming back to stores and centers, retailers and center operators alike need to continue to innovate and give consumers a taste of the future.