Pumping up the volume

Adam Zdrodowski, ‘Eurobuild CEE’: The retail property market in Poland has been defined by the intensifying competition in recent years. Does the sector still offer investment opportunities for international real estate investors and developers? Scott Dwyer, CEO, Atrium Poland Real Estate Management: Well, in Warsaw the vacancy rate in the office sector is in the mid-teens, while in the retail sector it is 2 or 3 pct, so offices are no substitute for retail. There are two things happening in the marketplace: one is that ownership is concentrating to more long-term holders and the other is that the development of new shopping centres is happening more in the smaller cities, as the economics in some of the larger cities are less feasible. From our perspective as a dominant landlord and operator, the supply will regulate itself as new developments are now more difficult to carry out – with the land prices, incentives and debt terms pressuring equity returns. As the ma