What We Heard at ICSC This Week
The retail industry was rocking the Strip this week for the 38th annual ICSC RECon, and Bisnow reporters were live on the scene to bring you the latest. (Unless we slept late, what with all the parties.) What happened in Vegas this week will surely not stay in Vegas. The 40,000 retail pros in attendance were on a mission to bring back new deals. Buzzwords on the floor this year were growth and expansion, and while many we'd asked were cautiously watching this fall's election, it didn't stop them from crowding the 1,000 booths in search of transactions.
The rise of e-commerce and the fall of the US economy led to fewer retail deals over the past five years, JLL Americas Retail chief Greg Maloney told us. But with the economy back to pre-recession levels, retail deals are starting to close in big waves, especially around hot job growth markets on the coasts. Bricks-and-mortar stores are more resilient than even the harshest critics thought, he says, since there's nothing like an in-person experience. Increased activity is also causing retail owners to rethink existing properties, adds Cushman & Wakefield Americas retail head Matt Winn, by adding unique uses like healthcare and newer, local concepts.
