Downtown Retail - Winter 2019

Downtown Sarasota today has a plethora of wonderful and exciting places to dine and relax. Our theatre, restaurant and arts venues are top notch and compare favorably to cities many times Sarasota’s size and population. What seems to be lacking, however, is a diversity of retail offerings. While downtown is blessed with several long-term, quality merchants and additional retail is poised to enter the market, we would certainly benefit if there were more stores for consumers and visitors alike. The good news, though, is that with the addition of new residents occupying recently delivered condominiums and apartments, new retail is almost certain to follow the demographic change and influx, a development that we eagerly await in the months ahead. Looking for a prime indicator that downtown is an excellent location for retail? Look no further than rental rates. Many storefronts have been updated and refurbished and tenants in those properties pay well over $30 per square foot on a triple net basis, in which the tenant covers expenses such as taxes, insurance or utilities. In some cases, downtown retail rental rates top $50 per square foot. If retail pays 4%-8% of gross revenue for space, the gross sales exceed $1,000 per square foot. (Please note that we are defining retail space to include traditional apparel stores as well as retail banking operations and financial services.)