New hotels to draw retailers to Shoreditch

By

Cajsa Lykke Carlson

Published
Jun 14, 2016

Seven new hotels - including Gansevoort, Nobu and CitizenM - are set to open in the Shoreditch area in east London.

This should act as a draw for some retail brands, who will want to align themselves with hotel brands and their clientele, says real estate provider Savills, which also thinks retailers will now further see the area as an international destination.

With the opening of the new hotels, there will be a 137% increase in ‘overnight guests’ in the Shoreditch area, going from 130,000 to 308,000 by the end of 2018.

Marie Hickey, director of Savills research, comments: “The attraction of the Shoreditch area was originally driven by its reputation as a creative hub, in turn boosting its visitor appeal.  Hotel brands have latched onto this appeal.  What is really interesting now is that we’re seeing international ‘luxury’ hotel brands such as Nobu and Gansevoort open their first London outposts in Shoreditch and it's the profile of these brands and their clientele, along with the office and residential story, that will be a key driver of the evolution of Shoreditch’s retail offer."

To the dismay of many locals, Shoreditch's Redchurch Street underwent a very fast gentrification process when Shoreditch House and the Boundary Hotel opened on the street, and now houses retailers including Versus Versace.

Savills' research shows that rising demand for retail space is already feeding through to rental growth, with a 11.8% average annual increase in prime ZA rents in the Shoreditch area over the last two years. Chiltern Street in Marylebone saw a similar effect when Andre Balazs Chiltern Firehouse opened, and the opening of The Rosewood Hotel and The Hoxton are having an effect in Holborn.