Survey: So far, so good for 2016

Retail tenants are not only reporting a strong performance for the year so far, but are also optimistic about the next six months.



That’s according to Levin Management’s annual mid-year Retail Sentiment Survey, in which two-thirds of retail tenants reported first-half sales to be at the same or higher levels than they were last year at this time. Only half of retailers had the same to say in Levin’s 2015 mid-year survey. And 67% of survey participants expect sales to continue at the same pace or improve through the remainder of the year.




Levin, a Plainfield, New Jersey-based shopping center management firm, regularly surveys its 95-property, 13 million-square-foot shopping center portfolio to gauge the overall state of the industry.



Increased participation in digital marketing solutions could be playing a role in the postive report. Four out of 10 retailers surveyed said they have increased their tech-centered activities this year, with mobile apps offering coupons and points being the most popular tool for in-store engagement. Social media and texts are being used more often for out-of-store marketing efforts, according to the survey.



“Retailers are seeing the benefits tech can provide to them. Big department stores across the board are getting sophisticated with it in several ways,” said Levin Management President Matthew Harding. Levin’s thrice-yearly surveys poll store managers across the company’s 95-property portfolio.



Some 40% of these managers said the growth of e-commerce had forced them to alter their business plans to add in-store services and incentives, increase their online collaborations, and change up in-store inventories.



Levin, too, is instituting tech-influenced changes. “We’ve started a pilot program at five properties to do mobile ad campaigns to bring people to the shopping centers,” said Harding,