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The Vienna-based company CC Real is today among the most significant, albeit so far relatively low-profile, players in the European retail real estate market. In an interview with ACROSS, founders Fabian Kaufmann and Sven Vorih, describe the journey from their beginnings in Croatia to their current expansion strategies in Europe and Australia. The discussion covers experiences in times of crisis, strategic partnerships, refurbishment successes, and the question of why CC Real still firmly believes in the future of retail.

On November 11, 2025, Munich will once again become the hub of the retail real estate industry as the 16th Münchner Handelsimmobilientag (MHIT) opens its doors. Under the guiding theme “City. Space. Direction. How Polarization Shapes New Retail Formats and Locations”, the conference will gather leading experts, investors, and practitioners to debate the transformative forces reshaping Europe’s retail landscape.

At the upcoming Expo Real 2025 in Munich (October 6–8), retail real estate takes center stage: a redesigned layout in Hall B3 promises better visibility and connectivity, while keynote addresses and panel talks—including a session on AI‑powered customer loyalty—underscore the industry’s forward-looking agenda.

ESG is everywhere in commercial real estate – on investor slides, in procurement tenders, in board-level commitments. However, while the environmental and governance pillars are well-institutionalized, the social side often remains vague, difficult to quantify, and harder to activate. That gap caught my attention, states Jean Carlos Delgado, Brand and Marketing Director, HyperIn Inc.

Under the motto “Creating beloved places – social, sustainable & successful”, the 2025 European Shopping Places Summit brought together leading experts in the retail real estate sector from 14 different countries to discuss how to make shopping places more sustainability-oriented, successful, and impactful on a social level, while giving voice to the different markets in Europe.

Retail real estate is back on the menu and continues to qualify as a significant portfolio component in the portfolios of institutional real estate investors, says Steffen Hofmann, Managing Partner at ambas. Even very large assets have proven eligible for transactions in the challenging investment market environment. Therefore, he is rather optimistic about the upcoming months. In this interview, he takes a look at the 2025 investment market.

“We need something that is consistent between retailer, operator, landlord and investor, and can be the key behind every decision, and shopping experience is the obvious answer.” Our latest Retail Talk, “Uncovering the REAL Issues, Problems and Challenges of Retail Real Estate”, revealed that many of the retail industry’s current issues can only be tackled if first we solve the problems that stem from within, as skills such as leadership, fast adaptability to the changing market environment, courage, as well as mutual understanding during the decision-making process are necessary yet barely present in the industry.

The challenges facing the retail real estate sector are more significant than ever. Future-oriented solutions for retail properties such as retail parks are urgently needed – this is precisely where the Retail PIN comes in. This newly founded think tank, an initiative of six leading companies in the retail real estate industry, pools strategic expertise and a shared vision: to actively and sustainably shape the future of retail locations.

In order for retailers and retail property operators to inspire and retain customers in the long term, it is essential that they rethink their spaces and develop innovative concepts, according to HBB. Such new approaches include the redefinition of multi-sensory shopping experiences and strategies to enhance the customer experience.

Shopping centers with high vacancy rates vs. booming outlets – so why not combine shopping centers and outlets? Haslinger Retail Real Estate Consulting is doing just that in St. Augustin, Germany: Huma World is a hybrid center with an outlet on the upper floor and a classic shopping center offering on the lower floors. In short, it is a weatherproof outlet with many restaurants and extended services. Michael Haslinger explains the advantages for brands, owners, and customers and why hybrid centers are not cure-all for the struggling shopping center sector.

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW) and Union Investment have maintained a very successful partnership for many years in relation to Köln Arcaden, Riem Arcaden in Munich and Spandau Arcaden in Berlin, which are among the leading retail properties in the sector. With the management contracts, which have now been extended ahead of schedule on a long-term basis, the two companies are once again confirming their cooperation and creating a long-term joint perspective for the three top assets. In future, the focus will be on further optimising the tenant structure in line with the major sector megatrends as well as on mixed-use components and sustainability measures.

This year’s MAPIC Awards honored winners across thirteen core categories, in addition to the People’s Choice categories and the winners of the MAPIC Academy—MAPIC’s inaugural start-up incubator sponsored by Nhood. The Awards reward exceptional retail brand performance and development, the latest cutting-edge solutions in sustainability and innovation, and the most recent real estate projects and redevelopments.

Shaping a sustainable future in retail real estate: HyperIn hosts panel on “Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Practical Approaches and Strategies for a Better Productivity in Retail Real Estate” at MAPIC 2023.

“Despite the significant challenges of recent years, it is clear that retail real estate is a stable and resilient asset class,” says Joanna Fisher. In an interview with ACROSS, the CEO of ECE Marketplaces talks about the opportunities of a once again dynamic market, dealing with industry changes and ESG, and her goals as the new Chairwoman of ECSP.

Retail property revitalization and valuation is a complex process that aims to increase a property’s value and make it more attractive to retailers and customers. HBB sheds light on the various aspects of this process, including analyses, costs, steps, success factors, and necessary partners. A site-specific approach is elementary, as the Rathaus Galerie Essen example shows.

The German transaction market for retail space recorded a low transaction volume of around EUR 2.8 billion in the first half of 2023 – compared with around EUR 7.8 billion in 2022 as a whole. Overall, it can be seen that online retail is having a negative impact on the development of sales in stationary retail even after the Corona pandemic. However, stationary retail for everyday needs in particular, such as retail parks in residential areas with a high population density, is proving robust and benefiting from the new situation. These trends extend much further than just Germany, as similar patterns can be recognized on other European markets as well.

Digitalization in the retail sector is in full swing. This is leading both to a changed shopping experience for customers of local suppliers and discounters and to simplified processes in the management and purchase and sale of retail real estate. However, retailers should be mindful of customers’ interests when using artificial intelligence (AI) in sales. While functioning digital systems are important, completely digital smart stores without personal support miss the mark when it comes to consumer needs. This is shown in the third GRR Basic Retail Report, which GRR Group is presenting with its cooperation partner Savills.

The property expert WISAG Facility Service offers specialized solutions and service packages for different market sectors. This also applies to retail real estate. WISAG deals with all the fundamental questions of the retail sector, far beyond the company’s core business. Joaquin Jimenez Zabala, who is responsible for WISAG’s business activities in the retail real estate sector, explains this and more to us.