Micro Retail Cluster Vibrancy

National developers often overlook the micro retailer, however, some of the most fantastic retail and mixed-use developments are anchored by or have significant participation by small scale retailers. It seems there is a fatal attraction by the retail industry with supposed “credit” or “national” retailers, specifically the big box and junior anchors, many of whom are closing and leaving the developers who depended so much upon them in a bind.

Do these boxes drive as much traffic as an appropriate grouping of micro retailers, and is there really the “credit” in a box compared to the success of those micro-retail clusters. While most larger retail projects and developers focus on the big/jr. anchor box to draw traffic, some of the most successful retail destinations and retail happens in very small square footage, or clusters thereof.

Consider one of the best examples, The Grove in LA, whereby without empirical data, but many personal visits, I would assume the micro retailer driven market must drive substantially more volume and traffic that any of the national credit tenants or big box tenants draw. And I would argue that the center would work even without the big boxes with which it has attracted. In light of the recent market, as well as the success of many of these micro retail clusters, it seems like there would be a much larger focus on trying to create these micro retail clusters to act as anchors and redevelop these big box anchors.