In January 2023, participation in shopping centers in the regions of Russia began to increase, and negative figures still remain in Moscow. In this respect writer Kommersant cites data from 1C-Rarus analysts.
In January 2023, the 1C-Rarus Index (reflecting the number of visitors per 1,000 square meters of retail space) surpassed the January 2022 level by 4.7% and January 2021 by 4.8%. Especially St. Petersburg, the indicator rose by 8%, and in the Moscow region by 0.7%.
According to Evgeny Dmitriev, head of the 1C-Rarus department of consumer counting systems, the gradual improvement in indicators may indicate market adaptation and the replacement of tenants leaving shopping centers with new ones. You can also observe a gradual recovery in purchasing activity.
Market participants agree that demand is now shifting to regional malls. Overall, there is a positive trend due to new tenants and traffic shifting to the entertainment district. However, analysts think that returning traffic to the indicators before the coronavirus pandemic is out of the question anymore. Traffic in general will not be able to return to 2019 levels as the pandemic and subsequent crises have led to an increase in customer exit and online retail.
January 10 RBC, with reference to Rstat Index participation index data from Antivor company Wrotereported that in the first holiday week of the year, the number of buyers in Moscow shopping centers decreased by about 12 percent compared to the same period of 2022. Traffic was also lower than at the beginning of the previous three years: 17% less than 2021, 7.3% compared to 2020, and 27.2% less than 2019.