Retail landlords cheer easing of lockdown as ‘non essential’ shops reopen across London

Retail landlords were among those cheering the reopening of stores on April 12, as shopping centres owners look to move on from a year when rental income slumped.

Property owners have had seen a number of tenants struggle to pay rent due to lockdowns forcing them to shut sites for months.

Rent holidays and deferrals have been in place for a number of occupiers, while landlords have also seen some high street brands permanently close branches or seek rent cuts.

Today ‘non essential’ retailers can reopen after being closed for most of the year to date.

Scott Parsons, chief operating officer UK at Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, which is behind London’s Westfield malls, said: “We are reopening today, hopefully for good, with an optimistic outlook as we welcome back shoppers eager to return to physical retail. With ONS data revealing household savings rose 16.1% in in Q4 2020, we expect this will boost spend in stores - very welcome news for businesses and jobs in the retail industry.”

Mark Allan, the boss of property giant Landsec which is behind One New Change in the City, said: “Excitement has been building since the Government confirmed that non-essential retail in England could open and the demand is certainly there – recent polling for Landsec suggests that more than eight in 10 people are planning to visit the high street or shopping centres this week.”