Retail rents in Birmingham now higher than Manchester, Leeds

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jul 6, 2017

Retail rents in Birmingham are rising with the city’s landlords now charging more than their counterparts in Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh, Bristol and Belfast, has revealed a new reports from Colliers International.

The rise is due to a flood of inward investment, regeneration projects, massive infrastructure and development work – all of which is making Birmingham an increasingly attractive city for retailers.

“Birmingham has witnessed a 4 per cent increase in Prime Zone A retail rental growth, compared to 0.2 per cent regionally and 0.8 per cent nationally (excluding London), with Prime Zone A rents in the city now at £295 per sq ft, up from £285 per sq ft in 2016,” said Emel Ahmet, associate director at Colliers.
Birmingham boasts of five department stores and four major shopping centres, including Bullring, The Mailbox and Grand Central, which opened in 2015.

The picture across the Midlands is a little more varied, with Merry Hills witnessing a 5% rise in rents year-on-year and Stratford-upon-Avon seeing a 4% increase, whereas prime rents decreased in Shrewsbury, Halesowen, Redditch and Walsall.

Colliers expects further regeneration initiatives to be launched over the next decade, adding further value for investors and traders alike. "However, this will mainly benefit areas which have witnessed the greatest decline since the financial crisis, rather than established shopping centres and prime locations," said Ahmet.

Nearly 500,000 sq ft of shopping centre development are in the pipeline for West Midlands over the next few years, with the majority currently under construction, said Colliers International.

This year will see small redevelopment schemes open in Stratford Upon Avon (Bell Court), Sutton Coldfield (Mulberry Walk), Wolverhampton (Mander Centre) and Worcester (Cathedral Plaza).