In recent years, the Shopping Centres and Retail sector has undergone a great transformation and growth. In the last forty years, Spain has exceeded 500 Shopping Centres and Retail Parks, ranking among the top European countries with the most square metres dedicated to this type of space, according to the AECC report, with the Canary Islands being the fourth autonomous community with the highest retail density behind Aragon, Murcia, and Madrid.
The transformation of Shopping Centres is mainly marked by digitalisation, where thanks to this there is greater control of data in real time, which allows greater management and knowledge of what is happening in the Centre, therefore there is a much wider margin for manoeuvre, and it is more self-sufficient.
On the other hand, the commercial mix has also evolved a lot, the Shopping Centres have been filled with a very international commercial offer, thanks to the entry of many franchises, the destruction of entry barriers and the improvement of the logistics sector. The Grupo HD Shopping Centres have a wide commercial mix, which has nothing to envy to any Centre anywhere in the world.
The offer of the Shopping Centres is in continuous evolution given that the behaviour of the customers and their new habits have changed, being more and more demanding, with less time and more technological. That is why the offer of our centres must be very focused on covering their needs, on being part of their day-to-day life and giving them the greatest possible comfort. Nowadays, it is very common to go to a Shopping Centre to do the shopping in the supermarket and leave it in the car, to go to the gym, to have a coffee or a juice to recover energy, to go to get the trousers you have booked on the web and to make an appointment at the hairdresser's. You are looking for spaces where the convenience of having the shopping in the supermarket and leaving it in the car is a must. You are looking for spaces where the convenience of having everything is in line with your needs.
The future of shopping centres is under continuous debate, there is much talk of their destruction due to the great impact of e-commerce and the growth of online sales. However, it cannot grow any more without a physical point, therefore, growth will go hand in hand, they will accompany and nourish each other.
Shopping centres are going to transform, and whoever accepts the change and focuses on the experience will have a greater competitive advantage.
Carlos Fernández
Director of Los Alisios
