Over the past 15 years, the North Texas region has added
nearly 60 million square feet of retail real estate space. In that same time
span, the Dallas/Fort Worth area has gone from an occupancy rate of 89 percent
to 95 percent, making it the longest streak of rates above 90 in six decades. However,
the North Texas region’s occupancy rate lags slightly behind Austin, Houston
and San Antonio.
What’s the reason for this growth? According to a report Weitzman,
a leading commercial
real estate firm, existing spaces are becoming a more attractive alternative
than building new stores because of lower costs and faster turn-around
development time.
Today’s digital age of online shopping hasn’t slowed down
the area’s occupancy rate. The report credits entertainment-focused tenants that
don’t contend with online stores and grocery chains who are now filling online
orders for curbside pickup. In fact, online grocery shopping is breathing new
life into that industry and helping to improve existing shopping centers.
Technology in general is helping revitalize brick and mortar
stores by enhancing the entire retail experience. For example, IoT
shelf-monitoring can be used to track inventory so customers will be able to
find what they are looking for when they go shopping. Self-checkout technology
is also bringing the digital online experience to brick and mortar stores by
letting consumers bypass lines with smart products.
Technology plays a key role for commercial retail property
owners and managers, as well. Video analytics can be used to count traffic
moving in and out of their property and gain insight into activity during
certain times, like peak hours and holidays. In addition, analytics is crucial
in helping keep properties safe from criminal activity. Stealth Monitoring combines
this advanced technology with human intelligence to catch events as they
happen, in real time and take immediate action. Stealth’s proactive solutions
are typically 25-60 percent more cost-effective than traditional security
guards and provide a more effective option.
Online shopping has created a shift in retail real estate,
but brick and mortar stores in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex remain strong.
If you would like more information about Stealth’s proactive
security solutions for your shopping center, contact us here.
