Tampa Retail Market on Cusp of Revival

TAMPA, FL—It's not exactly like Miami, but Tampa's retail market isn't too shabby in its own right. Indeed, after suffering through the Great Recession the Tampa Bay area is seeing somewhat of a retail renaissance.

We caught up with David Conn, executive vice president and Southeast director of the Retailer Services Group at CBRE, to get his take on Tampa's retail market in this exclusive interview. Be sure to sound off about what you are seeing in the comment box below.

GlobeSt.com: Describe the state of the retail market in Tampa right now.

Conn: There are definite signs of growth in the Tampa Bay retail market in 2014.  Economically, we took it on the chin during the recession because of our reliance on housing and construction, but we're in better shape than we were a couple of years ago—unemployment is down, retail sales are up, and our overall vacancy is at about 8%, which is healthy. As a result of these indicators, I believe we're on the cusp of significant new development for the first time since 2007.

GlobeSt.com: Where do you see that development occurring?

Conn: Since 2008, the limited amount of development that has occurred has centered on freestanding retail such as QSRs, sit-down restaurants, convenience and gas stores, some banks, and a limited number of drugstores as well as remodels of older well-located shopping centers. This trend has continued in 2014, but for the first time since the recession, we are seeing new larger projects being marketed with grand openings planned for late 2015 and first quarter 2016. There are at least six retail projects currently planned in Tampa Bay, totaling over 831,900 square feet.

GlobeSt.com: So would you say it's a landlords' or tenants' market right now?

Conn: There's been virtually no new construction since 2008, so most of the quality second-generation anchor tenant spaces are spoken for now. So in that sense, it's probably shifting to a landlord's market, depending on where the shopping center is located. That said, I don't think we'll see anchor tenant rents back to where they were prior to the recession.

Globest.com: Are you seeing any new retailer categories moving into Tampa?

Conn: The sporting goods category is active, as well as the fitness segment—Lifetime Fitness just opened a flagship store in International Plaza, and LA Fitness continues to be very active in our markets. The Container Store is new to Tampa as well, which is indicative of the housing market recovery.

Specialty grocers were very active this year in Florida. Trader Joe's opened its first store in Tampa and is under construction with a second store in St. Petersburg. Fresh Market continues to expand in the market and Whole Foods is rumored to be looking at Saint Petersburg.

Finally, organic grocer Earth Fare is eyeing Tampa for expansion. In addition to these new, exciting retailers, many of our old standbys continue to be active—Ross, TJX, Walmart, Publix, all of the dollar store concepts to name a few—all of which point to a strong retail market in the Tampa Bay area.