Every business owner worth his salt has heard of the 3 most important words in the retail and restaurant business: Location! Location! Location! However, the location doesn’t stop with just the strip center, but actually in where you choose to lease within that strip center. Do you know where the best location is within a shopping center and why? The answer to that question can vary depending on a number of variables, but in general, restaurants and retail stores would point to the end-cap as the best space to lease.
Where is the End-Cap?
End-caps are located at the far ends of a shopping center or strip center. They are highly desirable spaces commanding rents that may be $5-$15 more per square foot than the rest of the available spaces at the center. The main reasons that make an end cap an ideal location are the following:
- Visibility / Signage
- Accessibility
- Parking
- Outdoor Space / Drive-thru
Visibility and Signage
Not all shopping centers have the same advantages for end-cap spaces, but In many instances where the shopping center is located at an intersection, the end-cap will have visibility from two intersecting streets. Additionally, signage can be placed on as much as 3 sides of the exterior of the space giving it a strong branding and marketing advantage over the other in-line spaces. When a customer can easily find or see a business from the street, it drastically increases the chances of success for that particular retailer or restaurant.
Accessibility
The end-cap can also
be found near the area where the traffic enters and exits the shopping plaza. This is referred to as the all important ingress and egress of a shopping center. For many consumers, especially parents on the way home from work, the convenience of quickly getting in and out of a shopping center will often dictate where they will shop or eat.
Parking
Available parking is one of the biggest determining factors for a business owner when leasing at a strip center. Parking spaces are usually more ample toward the end caps of a shopping center because most of the tenants will be sharing the parking spaces in front of their stores and towards the middle of the shopping center. Businesses located at the end-cap have the advantage of not only being distant from the center of the parking lot, but also having store front parking on possibly two sides of the space instead of only one.
Outdoor Space and Drive-Thru
Because the end-cap is located at the very end of the center, it usually means that there will be a common area space that could be used for outdoor seating. Restauranteurs love outdoor seating. In south Florida, year round warm weather make outdoor seating one of the most profitable options a restaurant can offer its patrons. Inclusively, it can extend the square footage of the restaurant and significantly increase the sales per square foot. Often times, a landlord is willing to negotiate the use of the common area for outdoor seating, so as to increase the chances of success for that business.
A second and probably the most profitable benefits of an end-cap space is the opportunity for a drive-thru. Not all end-caps work as a drive-thru, but if you’re able to find one that does, this could add increased sales of 40%+. Typically drive-thru’s make sense for a restaurant use, but some retailers such as liquor stores and convenience stores can also utilize a drive-thru effectively.
Leasing the End-Cap
End-caps are often reserved and leased to national retailers for a couple of reasons. First and very important to a landlord is that they are typically a credited owner that targets these prime spaces as their preferred location. The other reason is that having a nationally recognized brand will usually help draw traffic and increase the value of the center. However, many landlords are also willing to lease it to local small businesses. Most often to a restaurant with more than one location and with a proven record of success. Ultimately, the end cap can offer a variety advantages for any business, which is why it is often considered to be the best space to lease in a strip center.
Currently, Saglo Development has several properties where an end cap space is available for lease. Please contact Carlos Guzman for more information on available spaces at (305) 704-3112 or visit our listings here: http://bit.ly/1vmxKKm