According to Watcom Group, in the week of June 28 - July 4, the Shopping Index (the number of visitors per 1 sq. M of retail space) in Moscow was 16% lower compared to the same period in the pre-crisis 2019. In St. Petersburg, the Shopping Index turned out to be 22,2% lower than the value of two years ago, writes Kommersant.
The last time such a pronounced drop in the attendance of shopping centers in Moscow was noted in April this year, and in St. Petersburg in mid-February. Experts attribute the decrease in traffic to shopping centers in the two largest cities of the country with the persistent hot weather, the holiday season and the resumption of quarantine restrictions associated with a new wave of the spread of coronavirus infection. The decision of the authorities to introduce a QR code system for food courts also has a negative impact on attendance in the capital.
Public Commissioner for Cadastral Valuation in Moscow Kirill Kulakov believes that the current situation associated with new quarantine restrictions and, as a consequence, the negative dynamics of traffic in shopping centers will have a negative effect on the retail real estate market: half of entrepreneurs from the field of trade, services and public catering will abandon plans to scale up business this year. According to his forecasts, the drop in traffic in shopping centers could reach 50%.
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