Amidst Retail Decline, Bright Spots Remain

Grocery-anchored centers continue to perform well and expand. This Whole Foods in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood made up a significant percentage of the city’s new construction in 2017.

CHICAGO—The US economy has been steadily rising for years, but even as many sectors make great progress, brick-and-mortar retail seems like an exception. Consumer confidence hit a 17-year high in November and most experts believe it will remain at a high level in 2018. Overall retail sales increased in 2017, and indicators point to a successful holiday shopping season. But the rise of e-commerce has introduced a new sales channel that helps undercuts many traditional stores.

Nearly 9,000 major chain stores closed in 2017, more than double the number in 2016 and even more than the number of closures in any year during the Great Recession, according to new report from Cushman & Wakefield. The company cites data from PNC Bank, which show 36 major retail bankruptcies in 2017, nearly matching the record 37 bankruptcies in 2009. The 2017 figure is an increase from the 26 bankruptcies in 2016 and the 22 in 2015.