CREJ

19 / 28

February 2018 — Retail Properties Quarterly — Page 19
COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL | DENVER RETAIL TEAM
Committed to Getting Results.
We are your complete real estate solution.
Accelerating success.
COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL
4643 S. Ulster Street, Suite 1000
Denver, CO 80237
|
JAY LANDT
Senior VP/Principal
JASON F. KINSEY
Vice President
LISA VELA
Senior Broker
BRADY KINSEY
Broker
JAWARA PARTEE
Broker
DEBBIE MARKER
Retail Marketing Director
Extensive
Real Estate
Experience &
Knowledge
Listings Totaling
Over 5Million
Square Feet
Over 50
National, Regional
&Local
Tenant Rep Assignments
U pon reading his obituary in
the newspaper, Mark Twain
famously replied, “The
reports of my death have
been greatly exaggerated.”
That’s how 2017’s constant head-
lines about the collapse of brick-
and-mortar retailing in America are
starting to feel as 2018 opens a new
chapter in the history of the shop-
ping center industry.
To be sure, there is too much
retail space per capita in America
and there are many retailers (Toys
R Us, Sears, Payless ShoeSource
and Gymboree, to name a few) who
have not yet identified a way to
keep up with changing consumer
habits as well as Amazon can.
Retailing in America is an active
dog fight. Some retailers are going
to be eaten, some will be maimed
and many will be victors.
As of mid-January, there have
been several positive sales reports
from name-brand merchants, as
identified on the holiday same-
store sales comparison chart.
So, while some retailers are
struggling, others have taken the
Amazon challenge and are fighting
back by reimagining and redefining
what the face of retail will look like
in the future.
Omnichannel selling is here to
stay, so the best merchants are
investing heavily in various plat-
forms to reach consumers. Walmart
purchased Jet.com for $3.3 billion
last year to further develop and
deploy this app across all mobile
platforms. The company’s goal is
to provide as wide an array of mer-
chandise as Amazon, using the
physical store base
as pick-up and
delivery locations.
Walmart already
has more than
1,000 pick-up loca-
tions open. The
company’s 11,500
U.S. locations are
located within 10
miles of 90 per-
cent of the U.S.
population, so the
proximity for the
last mile of deliv-
ery is unparalleled
by any retailer, including Amazon.
Walmart also is purchasing stand-
alone online retailers like ShoeBuy,
Bonobos and Moosejaw to further
broaden its platform.
Target has taken a slightly differ-
ent approach. While also investing
in digital platforms and fulfillment
through its acquisition of Shipt and
Grand Junction, Target has focused
on improving the in-store customer
experience by remodeling more
than 100 stores last year. The com-
pany is committing to remodel 325
stores in 2018 and over 1,000 by
2020 for a cost of $7 billion. Sales
at these next-generation stores
increased by as much as 4 percent
last year. At the same time, Target
is opening smaller-format stores
in urban infill areas where larger
stores cannot penetrate. Target also
is rolling out same-day delivery in
New York City.
Kohl’s has taken yet another
approach by agreeing to test selling
Amazon products and accepting
returns in 82 Los Angeles and Chi-
cago area stores. This seems like a
match made in heaven for Kohl’s,
whose stores are 40 percent too big,
and for Amazon, who is leading the
pack among e-tailers going to brick
and mortar with its purchase of
Whole Foods.
My personal favorite innovation
is Nordstrom’s new Local concept,
which opened in October in West
Hollywood. The store is 3,000 square
feet, compared to the company’s
typical 140,000-sf full-sized foot-
print. Local carries no dedicated
inventory. Instead, customers can
pick up and return online orders,
have clothes tailored, and enjoy a
glass of wine, cup of espresso or
cold-pressed juice while meeting
with a personal stylist, who will
help them select and order clothing
from the website. Customers can
even get a manicure before heading
to an evening event while they wait
for same-day tailoring on the new
dress that was delivered that morn-
ing. The new Local store is near two
full-sized Nordstrom locations and
caters to the busy lifestyle of the
company’s customers who want
ease of access and returns, but also
personal service and attention.
Apple’s most recent concept is
creating “Town Square” stores like
Retail Trends
Allen Ginsborg
Managing director
and principal,
mountain states,
NewMark Merrill
Cos., Longmont
NewMark Merrill Cos.
As of mid-January, there were several positive sales reports from name-brand mer-
chants, as identified on the holiday same-store sales comparison chart.