Shopping centres rebound in full year with no lockdowns

Rachael Ward | March 24, 2023

Major shopping centres turned over a record $54 billion in retail sales during the first full year of trading since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Melbourne’s Chadstone shopping centre topped the list with a $2.7b turnover in the 2022 calendar year, which was 16 per cent higher than in 2019.

Westfield Chermside in Brisbane came second with $1.2b in sales in 2022, followed by Melbourne’s Highpoint and Westfield Fountain Gate with $1.1b each.

Sydney’s Westfield Bondi Junction rounded out the top five, also turning over $1.1b.

The list was compiled by Shopping Centre News based of self-reported data from the 91 biggest shopping centres in Australia.

About 85 per cent of centres significantly increased their annual turnover since before the pandemic, according to the outlet.

Monash University’s Eloise Zoppos said research from before and after lockdowns showed customers definitely prefer physical shops over online outlets.

“Online shopping soared during the pandemic, a trend we’d seen on the rise in Australia for a long time, but we’re now seeing a slight correction in this trend,” Dr Zoppos said.

“There’s many elements of bricks and mortar retail that simply can’t be replicated online and that keeps customers coming back to physical stores, like the sensory and tactile product experience, the social element and, when done right, face-to-face customer service.”

Dr Zoppos said the report spoke to the resilience of Australian shopping centres and the local retail industry.

Three new centres made more one than $1b in sales – Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast, Westfield Miranda in Sydney and Westfield Carindale in Brisbane.