In 2004, the second shopping center - Plaza Romania in Drumul Taberei - was opened in Bucharest, and in retail supermarkets and hypermarkets retailers such as Carrefour or Billa operated several shops each, testing the Romanians' appetite for modern trade.
"In 2005, wherever you went, there was an open field, and only a few warehouses were shyly developed in the Capital, with only 50,000 square meters developed in the West zone. We are talking about a 20,000 sq m storage facility at Phoenix Real Estate in the ring road - Carrefour Militari area and Cefin's first warehouse of 15,000 sq m, now occupied by the same tenant, Altex. The Ring Road was a narrow road where you could stop or turn around at any time to take a picture or reach a property. And in the northern area, Pipera, to get to the periphery, you had to cross the main railway line, which many times during the day was blocked by the barrier. The stock then grew gradually until 2009, when it reached approximately 900,000 square meters. In the last three years, starting in 2014, the pace of development has resumed, so in 2016 the volume of construction was 200,000 square meters. 2017 will exceed the 2016 level, with the estimated delivery of new spaces over 250,000 square meters, perhaps the largest volume of developments so far, so the stock will be close to the 1.5 million meter Squares", said Rodica Tarcavu, Senior Consultant, Industrial Agency Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
The entrance to the Bucharest - Pitesti highway has remained the preferred destination for logistics developers, so over 70% of the current stock is concentrated at the miles of 13 and 23, becoming two landmarks in the local logistics market. In fact, 80% of the stock to be delivered this year is also concentrated in the Bucharest - Pitesti motorway area, despite the fact that some retailers are looking for storage solutions in the northern area of the city, especially in the A3 - Bucharest - Ploiesti.
The stock of logistics and industrial spaces in Bucharest represents almost half of the national profile market, but compared to other capitals in the region, the growth potential remains significant. At the end of the first quarter of 2017, Warsaw had a stock of logistics space of 3.1 million square meters, Prague 2.5 million square meters, while the stock in Budapest was approaching 2 million square meters. (source: constructiv.ro)
