Cushman & Wakefield has moved well past the 'e-commerce as a retail killer' to a narrative that has suddenly shifted to "retail resilience."

"Today's economic conditions will necessitate a cooling in spending, with temporary and modest impacts on retail CRE—but structural forces, including the leveling out of e-commerce, support a healthy retail sector outlook," according to its analyst James Bohnaker.

He said retailers' "more innovative and acute" focus on the consumer has helped the sector to overcome an estimated 184,000 establishments in the retail, leisure, and hospitality sectors closing permanently in 2020 – a 30% spike over the average attrition rate during 2012-2019. Cushman research finds that in Q2 2023, vacancy rates at shopping centers sank to the lowest level since at least 2007.