Watch above: A new report says there is a large amount of retail space in Saskatoon compared to other markets. Keith Webb and Duncan Mayer from Colliers International explain what this means to retailers and consumers.
SASKATOON – If you’re looking for a place to shop in Saskatoon, you shouldn’t have much trouble finding one. According to a recent study from Colliers International, Saskatoon has among the most retail space per capita in the country.
“We have around 52 square feet per person in Saskatoon of retail space,” said Duncan Mayer, research manager for Saskatchewan with Colliers. “Other markets around 30 per capita. A lot of that has to do with our trade area – it’s quite a bit larger than Calgary or Edmonton … we have a lot of small towns that rely on Saskatoon for their retail needs.”
The demand just seems to keep rolling along. Colliers says in 2014, 270,000 square feet of retail space was added to Saskatoon and by year’s end 75 per cent of it was occupied. Another 2.7-million square feet has been announced over the next two to five years.
According to Keith Webb of Colliers, much of it is retailers wanting to cash in on the region’s strong economy, and the growing suburban population.
“In reality I don’t see a slow down here,” said Webb, vice-president with Colliers International. “The province itself is in great shape.”
Restaurants are a significant part of the growth. Some 35 new restaurants have opened in Saskatoon in the last three years. GDP, household income and population all grew in 2014.
“A lot of major developers are expecting the residential component to continue to grow as we’ve seen over the last five to 10 years or so,” said Mayer.
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The Colliers study points to Holmwood, a new suburban development on the city’s east side that could house up to 90,000 people within the next 15 years. The study says there is already big box retail stores planned for the area.
“Retail has been almost insatiable across Canada as far as the demand for retail space,” said Mayer.
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