The main questions for the retail market at this moment are:

1. To what extent do retailers face problems because of the economic downturn and rising energy costs?

2. To what extent do sustainability issues in retail premises – or the lack thereof – contribute to this?

3. What is the best way of reducing energy consumption in the retail market?

Key findings:

• Retail chains and retailers currently face a wide range of challenges on both the cost and revenue side. These include in particular increases in purchasing and personnel costs, debts to be repaid to the tax authorities, indexation of rents paid with CPI and sharply increased energy costs. As a result, an increase in insolvencies can be expected.
• Speciality shops and the catering industry are most affected by these increased energy costs, as they have the highest gas and electricity consumption of all retail segments. Combined with increased purchasing costs and personnel costs, this is where the biggest cost increases within the retail market occur.
• Much uncertainty remains about the level of sustainability of Dutch retail properties. 64% of all Dutch retail properties currently do not have an energy label.
• One obstacle to making retail property more sustainable is the cost-benefit aspect. Shops are almost exclusively delivered as shells, leaving the tenant responsible for the installations.
• A (minimum) EPC Label obligation and the use of a WEii in the retail market help considerably in broadening the understanding of sustainability in the retail market.
• Shell-state + agreements and Green leases help with the cost-benefit aspect of making property more sustainable, as they make investments in sustainability worthwhile for the owner.