Overall, the top destination for global brands entering into the United States last year was New York (15), followed by Miami (10), Philadelphia (8), San Francisco (7) and San Diego (6), according to a new report from CBRE.
CBRE’s 11th annual “How Global Is The Business Of Retail?” report found that luxury and mid-range fashion retailers targeted Philadelphia for expansion, tapping into the market potential and affordability. One of these new retailers in 2017 included Orchestra Premaman, which opened its first U.S. store at the King of Prussia Mall.
“The Philadelphia market is highly-populated, has deep spending power and an international, diverse, and affluent shopping base that seeks world-wide brands,” said Steven Gartner, executive vice president, CBRE. “The international business sector, along with one of the largest university populations in the United States, drives this base and also generates visitors from Europe and Asia. The international “fortress hub” by American Airlines, along with recent additions by Qatar Airways, Aer Lingus and Icelandair, all point to the increased demand to Philadelphia, further reinforcing it as a world-class region.”
Overall, CBRE’s annual study found that retailer’s cross-border expansion into new markets declined by 2.9 percent last year from 2016 levels. That slight dip reflects the broader trend of retailers making deliberate, data-focused decisions on opening stores that fit best within their combined omnichannel networks of physical stores and online operations.
“International retail expansion is thriving, and it is doing so in a much more targeted manner using location analytics and guidance from expert advisors,” said Brandon Famous, CBRE Americas Retail Leader and head of global cross-border retail representation. “E-commerce has allowed retailers to showcase their brands for consumers in every corner of the world. In some cases, that means a retailer might not need to establish a flagship store on every high street and can focus on opening in select emerging markets that enhance its omnichannel brand.”
Other findings of CBRE’s annual survey include:
- Hong Kong remained the most popular market for new entry by foreign retailers for the third consecutive year, hosting 86 debuts by retailers new to the market last year. The rest of the top five were Dubai (59), Taipei (52), London (49) and Tokyo (46).
- Toronto was the most popular North American destination for new entry by foreign retailers last year, attracting 40 new entrants and ranking seventh globally. Canada proved especially popular with luxury retailers, which accounted for 34 percent of new entrants to the country.
- U.S. retailers remain the most active global expanders into foreign markets, with 19 percent of retailers expanding into new internationalmarkets last year doing so from the U.S. The next most active expanders were Italy (10 percent), France (10 percent), Japan (9 percent) and the U.K. (8 percent).
- Overall, the U.S. attracted 32 international retailers to make their debut in the country last year, ranking it 15th among countries for new entrants. Leading those new arrivals were Italian and French mid-range fashion brands such as Bruno Magli and Faith Connexion, restaurants including Italy’s Nutella Cafe and grocers such as Germany’s Lidl.
- Restaurants and coffee-shop chains increased their lead as the most active retail category for international expansion, capitalizing on a global effort by landlords to make their shopping centers more inviting by adding more experiential, Internet-proof uses.
To view the entire “How Global Is The Business Of Retail?” report, click here.
About CBRE Group, Inc.
CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBRE), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (based on 2017 revenue). The company has more than 80,000 employees (excluding affiliates), and serves real estate investors and occupiers through approximately 450 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide. CBRE offers a broad range of integrated services, including facilities, transaction and project management; property management; investment management; appraisal and valuation; property leasing; strategic consulting; property sales; mortgage services and development services. Please visit our website at www.cbre.com.
