Don’t Miss The Cracks Forming Beneath The Surface Of Your Shopping Centre

The Illusion of Growth

Inflation-driven price increases naturally push revenue figures higher, but this doesn’t mean consumers are buying more. In many cases, shoppers are spending the same—or even less—while paying higher prices for the same goods.

Likewise, increased foot traffic doesn’t always reflect stronger retail performance. More frequent visits may indicate consumers are spreading their spending across multiple trips, rather than making larger purchases per visit. If the same shoppers are returning more often but spending less, overall profitability could be declining, even as traffic counts rise.

Additionally, more shoppers are cross-shopping between major supermarkets, hunting for specials to save money. Instead of doing their full shop in one location, they are strategically visiting multiple retailers to get the best deals. While this behaviour boosts foot traffic numbers, it doesn’t necessarily increase overall spend within a shopping centre.

What’s Really Happening in Your Catchment?

To understand the real health of a shopping centre, landlords need to go beyond top-line numbers. Key questions to ask include:

• Is total visitation in the catchment increasing or decreasing? Understanding the overall trend in shopper traffic is crucial to evaluating performance for both your Centre and competing precincts.
• Are unique visitors growing, or are the same shoppers visiting more often? A rise in repeat visits from the same customer base isn’t the same as attracting new footfall.  Do you have a problem with engagement, reach or frequency?
• What is the level of customer penetration in each suburb? Knowing where shoppers are coming from can reveal opportunities and risks in the catchment area.
• How are consumer behaviours changing year-over-year and month-over-month? Tracking shifts in how, when, and why people shop can provide early warnings of emerging trends.

The Need for Deeper Insights

Instead of relying on surface-level metrics like revenue growth and door counts, shopping centre owners must take a data-driven approach to understand changing customer behaviours.

Advanced location intelligence and consumer analytics can provide a more accurate picture of what’s happening within a catchment—allowing for more strategic decision-making.

With retailers adapting to new market realities shopping centres must also evolve. Simply measuring success by foot traffic and sales isn’t enough. 

By analysing behavioural trends and deeper visitation data, operators can make smarter leasing, marketing, and investment decisions.

Looking Ahead

As the next round of asset revaluations approaches, shopping centres that rely on inflated figures rather than real consumer insights may face hard truths. 

Now is the time to move beyond traditional performance metrics and start leveraging data to understand who is shopping, how they are shopping, and what it means for long-term success.

Ignoring these deeper insights could mean missing opportunities for sustainable growth—and that’s a risk no shopping centre can afford to take.