ICSC Sees 'Better Times Ahead'

The retail industry is turning around, according to Michael Kercheval, president and CEO of the International Council of Shopping Centers. But a recovery might take a little longer than other areas of the economy, he says in a report looking back on 2009.”It could take 1.5 to 2 years before we are likely to see a full recovery in the shopping center industry,” Kercheval writes. The good news, he says, is that same-store sales during the holiday season could rise between 2% and 4% this year. While that isn’t a major jump, it’s a lot better than some of the dismal declines we were seeing over the last year.So it sounds like we are on a slow road to recovery. Do you see that happening more quickly, or will the road be slower?