Retail rent down by 40% - Where's a good place to open a clothes shop?

steve_oh

I just read on independant.ie that office and retail letting is down 40% since the peak. Where would be a good place to open a clothes shop in Ireland selling trandy clothes to young people. Just a small store someplace nice with plenty of people walking passed. What sort of rent am I looking at???

Tony Almeida

web design not working out for you?

DubTony

Your question is quite vague. But use a rule of thumb. The more people passing by the door, the higher the rent will be e.g. Grafton Street v. Meath Street. Are you in retail? If not, it's a very steep learning curve, and particularly in the rag trade. And the demographic you're aiming at have absolutely no loyalty to any particular retailer.

Donagh_mc

Retail is a volitile area at the moment and sales have fallen dramatically in recent times as we all know but if you're confident you've got a good product to sell then best of luck with it.

As for rent I'm not sure. Have a look here and you might find some ideas http://www.property.ie/commercial-property/ireland/type_retail-unit/sort_price-asc/

steve_oh

Thanks for the advice. It's a pure pipe dream but I'd love to have a go at a little place in cork, galway or dublin.

I have zero experience but like clothes and hate office work.

€40K per year for a place on oliver plunket st in cork...dang - that is pretty heavy.

Pls dont let my ignorance offend you here - but whats so steep about the learning curve anyway? getting good suppliers?? advertising etc?

What sort of markup is there on puma / adidas tracksuit tops / footwear I wonder??

mcaul

Retail rents have definitely fallen back to 2002 levels. Or in other words, back to reality.

Retail had so much steam in it that it had to blow up at some stage. the problem is the landlords kept jacking up the rents & the councils kept jacking up the rates, so the retailer didn't make any huge extra profits.

Now the market has plumetted, a lot of retailers have closed down and the landlords have up to recently refused to budge on rents as they thought things would get better quite quickly.

How wrong they are - the big players have threathened to pull out en masse from centres where rent reductions are not made and once one reduction was made, the others had to follow. - e.g. Best Menswear is connecetd to Pepe Jeans & tommy Hilfiger & another store. Karen Millen & Oasis, are the same owners and then you have the bestseller group with 6 retail formats. - Imagine one of these pulling out of a centre and you suddenly have 4 / 5 empty units!!

Finally, the independent retailers can get back into the better positions and bring something different to retail market in Ireland. Rent ARE down by 40 - 50% and property agents will actually meet with independent retailers again!

I say go for it, the market has lifted a little and you can wrangle geat deals from the landlords.

DubTony

steve_oh wrote: »

Thanks for the advice. It's a pure pipe dream but I'd love to have a go at a little place in cork, galway or dublin.

I have zero experience but like clothes and hate office work.

€40K per year for a place on oliver plunket st in cork...dang - that is pretty heavy.

Pls dont let my ignorance offend you here - but whats so steep about the learning curve anyway? getting good suppliers?? advertising etc?

What sort of markup is there on puma / adidas tracksuit tops / footwear I wonder??

Ben Dunne said it a few months back. "If you're in retail and you're not a retailer, get out."

It's not all about supply and suppliers or advertising or even location Steve, there are a million and one other things to learn about the business. Budgeting and forecasting are just 2 areas where a lot of guys fall down. In my opinion, no-one should enter the retail trade as an owner unless they've spent a few years in the game at the top levels, or have a real knack for the particular area of the business they go into.

There are way too many pitfalls. Staffing is an area that takes years to get right, and remember, it only takes one snotty comment from a member of staff and your customer is gone, and telling all his friends about that crappy shop. BAd staff will cost you an absolute fortune. Do not underestimate how important the right people are.

The competition is cut-throat and the fashion business is seasonal. One bad purchase in one season can see you wiped out. Nor can you start off too small, as carrying a range is vital.

I could go on all day. I spent 25 years in convenience stores. And I'm still learning. What I've learnt in the last few years are the finer points, that one may not necessarily need to know to begin with, but they are the things that give you an edge. And 40K a year rent is nothing. That's €800 a week. That rent is a pittance.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade. I admire your ambition. But retail is not the business it once was. Most people in it today are professionals. I'm of the opinion that the days of guys picking a unit, starting up, and then making it worthwhile are gone.

morchadboru

DubTony wrote: »

Ben Dunne said it a few months back. "If you're in retail and you're not a retailer, get out."

It's not all about supply and suppliers or advertising or even location Steve, there are a million and one other things to learn about the business. Budgeting and forecasting are just 2 areas where a lot of guys fall down. In my opinion, no-one should enter the retail trade as an owner unless they've spent a few years in the game at the top levels, or have a real knack for the particular area of the business they go into.

There are way too many pitfalls. Staffing is an area that takes years to get right, and remember, it only takes one snotty comment from a member of staff and your customer is gone, and telling all his friends about that crappy shop. BAd staff will cost you an absolute fortune. Do not underestimate how important the right people are.

The competition is cut-throat and the fashion business is seasonal. One bad purchase in one season can see you wiped out. Nor can you start off too small, as carrying a range is vital.

I could go on all day. I spent 25 years in convenience stores. And I'm still learning. What I've learnt in the last few years are the finer points, that one may not necessarily need to know to begin with, but they are the things that give you an edge. And 40K a year rent is nothing. That's €800 a week. That rent is a pittance.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade. I admire your ambition. But retail is not the business it once was. Most people in it today are professionals. I'm of the opinion that the days of guys picking a unit, starting up, and then making it worthwhile are gone.

I agree with Dubtony.......a lot of over-supply out there. It's great to have dreams but you have to face reality and look at trends and clothes shops are a trend that are not in fashion so much these days.
I can't say it loud enough but aiming at age-related products is the way to go.....our population is getting older
11% are now 65+
22% are 45-64
32% are 25-44

anti-aging, retirement and end of life products. Demand for these is going to triple. Why do you think the government if bricking it over future pension provision.


Good luck