%T The relationship between attractiveness of retail areas and their performance
%X Inner cities are subject to the changes occurring in society. The deterioration that occurs when vacancy increases may indicate a retail area’s decreasing attractiveness. However, retail areas are performing above prior expectations. It is essential to understand the impact of changing retail circumstances and shocks like Covid-19 on the performance of retail areas. According to Reilly’s law of retail gravitation, attractiveness is determined by only size and distance of the retail area. To investigate this phenomenon, the relationship between attractiveness indicators of a retail area and its performance is researched. Using a multiple linear regression method, the results show that size and distance explain 53 percent of footfall and 68 percent of turnover, indicating that Reilly’s law cannot entirely explain attractiveness and other variables should be incorporated. Location effects add a significant amount to the explanatory power. Furthermore, retail areas are sensitive to the size of the municipality they are located in. A small retail area in a large municipality generates a higher turnover than a small retail area in a small municipality. A recommendation for further research is to include a longer time frame to compare reactions to economic and social circumstances.
%D 2022
%L theses_frw4065
%A Nynke Hoomans