Advanced Analytics

Asset Optimization/Strategic Market Plan

The strategic market plan determines the optimum locations for productive and profitable stores in a selected market or geographic area. Tailored to client needs, the elements of the analysis include:

  • Benchmarking of overall market dynamics, including population growth, household composition trends, and demographic characteristics such as income, ethnicity, and age.
  • Analysis and illustration of the magnitude and direction of population and household growth via Geographic Information System (GIS) spatial mapping.
  • Understanding of the market’s economic base, the key drivers of growth, and the prospects for future economic growth, as well as the effects of the business cycle on the local economy.
  • Identification of the major concentrations of existing and planned retail and shopping center development in the market.
  • Inventory of key competition in the market, and an assessment of their strengths and weaknesses with respect to location, performance, and market share.
  • Development of recommended action plan for your retail expansion. If a new market, the analysis would provide a new store roll-out plan. If an existing market, the analysis would review current store coverage and interactions and recommend future actions (close, relocate, retain) as well as identify potential new store locations.

Location Analysis or Retail Site Selection

A location analysis or a retail site selection study evaluates the potential opportunity for a specific site.

This is applicable for retail stores investigating new locations, or shopping center developers interested in understanding the market opportunity a proposed site might offer.

Tailored to client needs, a location analysis would involve some of the following elements:

  • Overview of the surrounding market and review of macro trends such as population and employment growth.
  • Delineation of retail trade area boundaries for the site based on drive time analysis and other influencing factors such as topography, competition, and regional accessibility.
  • Examination and benchmarking of trade area characteristics such as population and household change, and demographic characteristics such as age, income, and ethnicity.
  • Review of key retail store or shopping center competition within the trade area, focusing on relative strengths and weaknesses against the proposed site.
  • Forecast of sales potential for the site and estimation of market share capture for the retailer or shopping center.
  • Final recommendation for the specific geographic location, taking all factors into account.

Example of a GIS Map

Generic Dallas Market Map

Shopping Center Repositioning

During the life cycle of a shopping center, the underlying market dynamics are continually evolving. Rates of population growth (or decline), demographic characteristics, economic forces, and competitive factors all influence the relative health of a retail shopping destination and the geographic reach of its trade area. These variables largely determine the tenant mix and define the target market for a shopping center. The strategic challenge is to remain aligned with the optimal target market and customer base.

Over time, changes in these variables tend to undermine the retail store or shopping center. Here are some of the services focused on revitalizing a retail property, shopping center, or other real estate development.

Acquisition Reviews

Acquisition Reviews provide an objective, fact-based perspective to facilitate your investment decisions in acquiring a retail store, shopping center, apartment complex, or office building, whether a single location or portfolio.

Typical components of this analysis include:

  • Delineation of trade area boundaries.
  • Benchmarking of trade area fundamentals such as population, household, and demographics—with an emphasis on the forward projections.
  • Quantitative and qualitative assessment of acquisition candidates, focusing on relevant performance metrics and market position relative to trade area competition.
  • Assignment of a market score or investment grade to the project based on our proprietary ranking methods.

Marketing Research Services

A custom shopping center repositioning and renewal study might include some of the following marketing research services:

Spatial Analytic Consulting

Decision Analyst’s strengths in statistics and mathematics, simulation, modeling, and optimization provide the analytical horsepower to address complex business and strategy problems. If you have Advanced Analytics questions you would like to discuss, please contact Elizabeth Horn, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Advanced Analytics (ehorn@decisionanalyst.com) or Jerry W. Thomas, Chief Executive Officer (jthomas@decisionanalyst.com) via email or call 1-800-ANALYSIS (262-5974) or 1-817-640-6166.