Hong Kong News

Nonpartisan, Noncommercial, unconstrained.
Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Tsim Sha Tsui now Hong Kong’s most expensive retail area, with Causeway Bay luxury sales hit

Tsim Sha Tsui now Hong Kong’s most expensive retail area, with Causeway Bay luxury sales hit

Retail rents in Tsim Sha Tsui declined by about 17 per cent between April and June, while those in Causeway Bay fell about 25 per cent. Tsim Sha Tsui rents more sustainable as its retail landscape is owned and supported by major developers, consultant says

Tsim Sha Tsui, located on the tip of Kowloon peninsula, has emerged as Hong Kong’s most expensive retail neighbourhood for the first time in its history. Causeway Bay, which had held the accolade until now, has been hit harder by sluggish luxury goods sales.

Tsim Sha Tsui, which is home to Canton Road and its Hermes, Chanel and Gucci luxury boutiques, has seen rents decline by about 17 per cent in the three months between April and June to an average of HK$1,018 (US$131) per square foot a month, real estate consultancy Cushman & Wakefield said. Retail rents in Causeway Bay, meanwhile, dropped by 25 per cent to HK$969 per square foot a month over the same period.

Both Tsim Sha Tsui and Causeway Bay have borne the brunt of the city’s anti-government protests and the coronavirus pandemic. Mainland Chinese tourists, the mainstay of luxury goods sales in Hong Kong, have stayed away because of violent protests last year, which were followed by travel restrictions and border closures this year. Tourist arrivals fell by 99 per cent in the second quarter of this year.

“Rents in Tsim Sha Tsui will be more sustainable because its retail landscape is owned and supported by several major developers,” said Kevin Lam, Cushman’s executive director and head of retail services in Hong Kong. “The retreat of luxury will push the vacancy rate in Causeway Bay further up this year. Incoming non-luxury tenants are likely to drag down rents along with a shift in the tenant mix,” he said.

A shop once occupied by Swiss watchmaker Tissot is now home to a mobile phone accessories vendor, which is paying just 6 per cent of what its predecessor forked out in monthly rent. Rents in Causeway Bay, home to Russell Street, once the world’s most expensive shopping strip, have dropped by half from a year ago, and by 76 per cent from an all-time high recorded in the fourth quarter of 2013.

Tsim Sha Tsui lost luxury jeweller Tiffany in March and Italian fashion label Valentino in April, while in Causeway Bay, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Tissot, Rado and Victoria’s Secret have either left or are leaving when their current leases expire.

“The prospects for high-street retail remain challenging. Non-discretionary retail, pop-up shops, shopping malls with organised promotional efforts and more supportive elements for tenants will be among the emerging trends in the coming quarters,” Lam said.

The city’s retail sector has been on its knees – retail sales fell 32.8 per cent year on year in May, which was the 16th consecutive month of declines. The sales of jewellery and watches declined by about 70 per cent.

And the outlook remains bleak amid the pandemic, rising unemployment and the worst recession since records began in 1974.

“In two-three years’ time, retailers will be more focused on cost saving than expansion. They will be looking for lower rents,” said Lawrence Wan, senior director of advisory and transaction services, retail at CBRE.




Newsletter

Related Articles

Hong Kong News
0:00
0:00
Close
It's always the people with the dirty hands pointing their fingers
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Steve Jobs' Son Launches Venture Capital Firm With $200 Million For Cancer Treatments
Google reshuffles Assistant unit, lays off some staffers, to 'supercharge' products with A.I.
End of Viagra? FDA approved a gel against erectile dysfunction
UK sanctions Russians judges over dual British national Kara-Murza's trial
US restricts visa-free travel for Hungarian passport holders because of security concerns
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Political leader from South Africa, Julius Malema, led violent racist chants at a massive rally on Saturday
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
'I am not your servant': IndiGo crew member, passenger get into row over airline meal
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Spanish Citizenship Granted to Iranian chess player who removed hijab
US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell freezes up, leaves press conference
Speaker McCarthy says the United States House of Representatives is getting ready to impeach Joe Biden.
San Francisco car crash
This camera man is a genius
3D ad in front of Burj Khalifa
Next level gaming
BMW driver…
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
×