The most central streets of Valencia are bustling with activity these days due to the presence of tourists who peck at the shops in the commercial arteries in a summer with high tourist occupancy. Perfumeries, fashion or lingerie stores make up the offer on streets like Don Juan de Austria, where there are no more free stores.
The last one to be occupied shows the “rented” sign, although it is still closed. Before it was the headquarters of one of the Zara stores in Valencia, but its transfer to another store on the same street -the old Jorge Juan Gallery- has left an establishment free which, according to sources in the area, will be a new store in September Offices.
Agents in the sector explain that the opening of physical stores in Valencia continues to grow strongly after the pandemic, points out the Retail Valencia report prepared by the real estate consultancy Savills. The openings in 2023 have generated zero availability in Jorge Juan and Don Juan de Austria streets after 2022 and the beginning of 2023 in which 27% more establishments opened than the previous year in the so-called "prime areas" of the capital del Turia: Colón, Don Juan de Austria, Jorge Juan, Ruzafa and Paseo de Ruzafa streets, where companies such as Benetton chose to settle in Spain for the first time years ago.
Of the streets analyzed by the consultant this summer, availability is 0% in Don Juan de Austria and in the stretch from Sorní street to the Mercado de Colón on Jorge Juan street. The strategic situation and the large influx of public make them a preferred destination for mid-range and high-end brands. They even explain that there is a waiting list to access these commercial hubs.
In recent months, firms such as Unisa, Captain Candy -dedicated to sweets- and Foot Locker, among others, have opened their stores on this street. Calle Colón has also welcomed new brands such as IQOS and Tag Heuer. In addition, the high commercial activity, added to the reactivation of the economy and tourism, has resulted in brands such as Scotch
According to the consultant's report, the average vacancy rate in the "prime area" is 4.8% and indicates that there are only 11 unoccupied premises. One of them is on Calle Colón, next to Plaza de los Pinazo and next to Freshly Cosmetics, a brand born online that, like many others, has made the leap to face-to-face in Valencia.Here is the example of Singularu or Hawkers.
Of the 212 commercial premises on the five streets that make up the "prime" area, fashion accounts for 56% of the spaces, followed by the cosmetics segment (10%), services (7%) and restaurants (7%). Supermarkets occupy 4% of occupied premises and luxury stores, 3%. The remaining 11% are firms from other sectors.
As for rents, the price has increased in four of the five streets in the "prime area", still without reaching the values prior to the pandemic. Calle Colón has the highest rents in Valencia, with an average of 115 euros per month per square meter, with an annual increase of 2.68%.
In Jorge Juan street they have registered an annual increase of 2.22%, up to 92 euros/m2 per month. Despite the price, the brands will continue to expand because the rental conditions, the experts point out, continue to be "favorable".
