KeyPoint Greater Hartford Retail Report Shows Increased Occupancy
KeyPoint Partners, LLC has released The KeyPoint Report on Greater Hartford, Connecticut 2013, Bob Sheehan, Vice President of Research, announced today. The Report examines supply, occupancy, absorption, and retailer expansion and contraction for virtually every retail property in the region. This year’s Report features a ten-year historical perspective: a profile of the market from the relatively good times beginning in 2003 to the present.
“Greater Hartford is still taking baby steps in its attempt to recover from the Great Recession”, Sheehan says, “Following a few up-and-down years, the vacancy rate in Greater Hartford fell to 11.3%, its lowest since 2009, and a significant drop from the 12.0% vacancy rate last year”. Still, Sheehan notes, occupancy levels “need to improve substantially before we declare a healthy retail climate in the region.”
The top three retail categories in added square footage were all food and beverage related. Grocery Stores led the way with 91,900 square feet of net new space. Eating Places was next as restaurants continued to ride the recovery tide. Food-Grocery also led in net new stores, increasing by 10 locations. Health & Fitness Services and Beauty Salons and Services tied for second, netting seven stores.
Walmart Neighborhood Market, with its first entry into the Greater Hartford market, a 59,700 square foot store in West Hartford, took the top spot for incremental space in the region. Kohl’s took second place with the addition of its new 58,966 square foot store in Berlin. LA Fitness opened a 35,100 square foot health club in Farmington, good enough to rank third. Sleepy’s and Subway tied for the lead in the number of new stores in Greater Hartford with six apiece.
The Report is based on KeyPoint Partners’ GRIID, a powerful source of retail market knowledge that maintains detailed information on virtually every retail property in key New England markets. The Greater Hartford, Connecticut includes 26 cities and towns representing more than 835 square miles and approximately 812,200 permanent residents (22.6% of the state population).
The complete KeyPoint Report can be accessed online - click here. The KeyPoint Reports for Eastern Massachusetts/Greater Boston and Southern New Hampshire, published earlier this year, are also available. For more information about KeyPoint Partners’ custom retail research capabilities and the KeyPoint GRIID contact Bob Sheehan, Vice President of Research, at BSheehan@KeyPointPartners.com or at 781.418.6248.
