Yoga, food part of retail revolution

Shop space in Hamilton’s central business district is shrinking as property owners reduce, refurbish and refresh their models to suit changing buyer behaviour.

‘‘Landlords aren’t just sitting idly by and doing nothing,’’ NAI Harcourts managing director Mike Neale said. ‘‘They are also seeing themselves as part of the solution.’’

CBD-wide renovations are accounting for retail vacancy rates, which have fallen from 6.8 per cent to 6.3 per cent from December 2017 to June 2018.

In December, the volume of stock temporarily withdrawn from the market was 10,200 square metres. In June

2018, that figure jumped to 11,500sqm.

‘‘It’s not just about retailers and changing their models. It’s also about landlords being part of this process.’’

Retail models evolve constantly, Neale said. Retailers are having to change how they do business.

‘‘Retail is about bricks and mortar. It’s not just about online retail; it’s a combination.

‘‘And the really successful ones are going down both tracks. The retail experience is everything.’’

He said good staff and products are not the only things that make a retail experience good. Millennials, for instance, want things that are sustainably or ethically sourced and environmentally friendly.

Big on the new CBD retail scene are specialised food and beverage outlets, emerging brands, niche products and active modes of transport such as walking and cycling.

Neale pointed to Holy Spoke Bike Repair, electric bikes shop Electrify.NZ and Lululemon, which sells running and yoga clothing and then clears the retail space at the weekends to offer yoga classes.

‘‘Lululemon on Ward St is a really good example,’’ Neale said.

‘‘All of the furniture is on castors so they can move. They can run yoga sessions in the middle of the floor, so it is becoming a more flexible space.

‘‘Food is an increasing part of it. You can’t replicate that online.

‘‘Sure, we’ve got Uber Eats, but that’s only going to be a small part of the market.

‘‘People want to get out and socialise and they want that whole experience.’’

The number of residential apartments popping up in the CBD was having an effect on retail, too.

‘‘It’s just evolving. Good retailers who take up the challenge will be successful.

‘‘The ones who don’t change their model will probably disappear over time.

‘‘We’re not quite sure where it is heading and I think we all know that, but the important thing is everybody recognises there has to be change.’’

Mike Neale, above, of NAI Harcourts