Quality Retail Near SD's Universities is Needed

Parker: “Especially given the proximity of a large student population, social-media marketing provides an excellent opportunity to connect with this consumer base on the platforms with which they’re familiar.”

SAN DIEGO—Both students and faculty spend a majority of their days on campus and need quality retail nearby for their daily needs, Capstone Advisors‘ VP of leasing Christie Parker tells GlobeSt.com. The firm recently completed six new leases at its commercial retail facility in the Linda Vista submarket, the Presidio. An indicator of the strength of the recently completed renovation and the area’s demand for quality retail, these new tenants provide both new and proven concepts to this area that are aimed at meeting the needs of both residents and the student population affiliated with nearby University of San Diego.

We spoke with Parker about the need for this type of retail near San Diego’s universities and how this need is being met.

GlobeSt.com: Why is there a need for quality retail near San Diego’s universities?

Parker: Both the students and faculty spend a majority of their days on campus and need quality retail nearby to be able to grab a quick bite to eat, pick up groceries, drop-off and pick up their dry cleaning and be able to run errands they don’t have time to do except during short breaks. That’s why we felt it was going to be a perfect match to take Capstone Advisors’ history of identifying retail centers with great potential and our experience conducting renovations to make the Presidio the retail center to meet those specific needs for the population near the University of San Diego.

GlobeSt.com: Is this need being met?

Parker: I can’t speak for the neighborhoods around all of San Diego’s universities, but I certainly believe Capstone’s leasing efforts at the Presidio will help meet some of the demand for quality retail for the students and faculty of the University of San Diego. When we first purchased this center, the Presidio hadn’t seen a major renovation since it was initially built in 1966. In that time, the university and its surrounding residential neighborhoods have continued to grow, so we knew we could create a really vibrant project to reflect the vitality of that community and take advantage of what was underutilized real estate.

The Presidio will help meet some of the demand for quality retail for the students and faculty of USD.

GlobeSt.com: What are developers doing to attract college-student/family and faculty to shop at the retail business in their centers?

Parker: The first, and likely the most important thing, Capstone has done is to pursue the kind of tenants that will meet the demand of this demographic—tenants who understand the advantages of locating so close to a major university. Additionally, we have worked to develop a digital-marketing strategy for all of its centers and tenants. Our strategy is unique in that the focus of our promotional efforts is on the individual tenants and not on the center itself. We focus on social-media-marketing spending, including promoted content through Facebook and partnerships with influencers on Instagram. We use these formats to drive business to individual tenants and have been excited by the results we’ve seen thus far. Especially given the proximity of a large student population, social-media marketing provides an excellent opportunity to connect with this consumer base on the platforms with which they’re familiar.

GlobeSt.com: What do these regions demand from nearby retail centers? 

Parker: Well, they are students, so lots of food! Mostly quick-service restaurants and some dine-in, table-service restaurants that are reasonably priced. We find that service-type tenants like dry cleaners and nail salons are sought after, as well, to help the population of consumers check off their to-do lists with the convenience of being close to campus.