Footfall in shopping centers also increases by 3.4% compared to 2023.
Home is the sector that has stood out the most in sales, led by the Furniture subsector, which has experienced a growth of 10.3%.
Occupancy in shopping centers managed by Cushman & Wakefield remains high, reaching 95.4%.
The dynamism of the retail sector consolidates in 2024 with sustained growth in both footfall and sales in shopping centers. According to the latest data from Cushman & Wakefield, footfall has increased by 3.4%, while sales have recorded a 3.5% increase compared to last year.
Regarding sales, the sector that has shown the best performance has been Home, with a growth of 6.5%, especially highlighting the Furniture subsector, which has experienced a notable increase of 10.3%. Another segment with positive results is Electronics and Appliances (+5.9%), with Electronics leading the increase at 8.9%. Likewise, Health and Beauty has maintained its good momentum, with a 5.5% increase, driven mainly by Pharmacies and Herbalists (+10%). On the other hand, the Fashion sector, which represents the largest share in the market, occupying on average more than a third of the total area in shopping centers, has recorded a growth of 2.5%. And, the Sports sector has shown a slight improvement of 2.9% in total sales, driven mainly by a 3.9% growth in the sportswear subsector.
"The growth in sales and footfall in 2024 demonstrates the ability of shopping centers to evolve in a constantly changing consumer environment. These results reinforce the importance of strategic management focused on innovation, diversification of offerings, and an attractive shopping experience”, says Rafael Mateu, International Partner and Head of Asset Services & Retail Sector at Cushman & Wakefield.
The fourth quarter of 2024 (Q4) has consolidated as the period of greatest growth of the year, with a 3.9% increase in sales. This performance was accompanied by an improvement in consumer confidence, reflected in the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), which reached 80.6 points in November, adding 1 point compared to the previous month and 3.9 points compared to the same period in 2023, according to data from the Center for Sociological Research (CIS).
Within this last quarter, the sectors with the highest growth have been Leisure (+11.3%), with cinemas standing out with 25.9%, driven by the major releases of these months; Home (+10.5%), with Furniture once again as the main protagonist, growing by 17.3%; and Hobbies and Entertainment (+7.2%), with the sub-sectors of Bazaar (+12.8%) and Toys (+9.6%) showing solid performance.
Despite an improvement in the cinema industry in terms of total sales, it remains in negative values (-0.4%). The number of spectators has fallen by 5.9% so far this year, although this figure represents a recovery compared to recent years.
Regarding the occupancy of shopping centers, it remains high, reaching 95.4% in GLA, reflecting the sector's stability and the continuous interest of retailers.
Meanwhile, retail parks have had an outstanding performance, with a sales growth of 6.4%. The most benefited sub-sectors have been Electronics and Furniture, which have recorded the highest increases.
These data consolidate the good moment of the retail sector in shopping centers, reinforcing their key role in the shopping and leisure experience of consumers.
In Spain, Cushman & Wakefield manages and/or markets 35 shopping centers and retail parks with a total area of 1.6 million square meters, an annual footfall of 140 million visits, and a sales volume of €1.5 billion.
