Gold On The Road: Chicago Retail Bus Tour Highlights 2026

Research evidence excerpt

Gold On The Road: Chicago Retail Bus Tour Highlights 2026

selection decisions. This is particularly relevant as concepts such as Aerie gain

sufficient brand recognition to expand into lifestyle centers. Finally, Lifetime Fitness

also maintains multiple formats, whether it's urban or suburban locations, or

those adjacent to malls. It is both densifying existing markets, as evidenced by the

expected opening of its 17th club in the Chicago market, and opening in new

markets such as Orlando and Sarasota. We believe this flexibility broadens

retailers' ability to pursue growth despite limited space availability in desirable

trade areas.

Smaller, efficient store formats gaining traction. Burlington provided one of

the clearest examples of retailers optimizing store footprints. The company is

transitioning away from oversized legacy boxes toward smaller stores averaging

approximately 25k sq ft. The Burlington location we toured originally opened in

the market in 1997 but relocated in August 2025 to its current location. Its

relocated stores typically generate a 5-10% sales lift. Moreover, downsized stores

are approximately 50% smaller, while achieving higher productivity by over 80%,

and lower occupancy costs by more than 200 basis points. We view these trends as

supportive of shopping center landlords, as retailers continue to optimize their

footprints rather than exit physical retail.

The consumer remains bifurcated. Retailers broadly described a consumer

environment that remains stable, albeit uneven across income cohorts. Walmart

noted lower-income consumers continue to experience greater volatility due to

inflation, fuel prices, and broader economic uncertainty. However, it indicated

volatility has moderated relative to earlier in the year. Middle- and higher-income