London’s New Bond Street named second most expensive retail location on earth

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jul 19, 2017

London’s New Bond Street has taken the top spot for the fastest growing prime retail location in the world and is now the second most expensive street for retailers after New York’s Fifth Avenue, according to a research report from CBRE.

New Bond Street is home to some of the world’s most luxurious brands like Cartier, Bulgari, Chanel, Hermes and Dior. In the first quarter of 2017, it recorded prime rental growth of 39.1% compared to the same period last year, boosted by the arrival of labels such as New Balance and Nars.

CBRE’s Top 10 global high streets ranking shows that the famous London destination has an average annual rent of $1,753 per sq ft, second only to New York’s Fifth Avenue which retains its position as the world’s most expensive retail destination commanding $3,240 per sq ft per year. Hong Kong, Paris and Toyko make up the top five markets for prime retail rents.

“London’s overall performance is emblematic of the broad strength we are seeing across the retail market in Europe. Demand for quality retail space in London remains robust and the arrival of brands such as New Balance, and Nars has further underlined the importance of these prime shopping destinations,” said Rhodri Davies, Head of UK Retail, CBRE.

“However, an increase in occupational costs, as a result of business rates revaluation, has meant that retailers are increasingly being more selective about their choice of store location.  This has resulted in a slowdown in the past six months of retailers transactions in London’s prime retail streets.”

Europe was the only region to register rental growth in the first quarter of 2017 with an increase of 4.3% year-on-year.