A tasty option for real estate investors?

Could this be a turning point for both the high street and those who invest in it?

Food halls in city centres have become a familiar sight over the past few years offering a central hub for people to gather. With the pandemic keeping us local, this has increased our interest in what is available closer to home and how we can support smaller local independent businesses. There is a growing interest in replicating the city food halls in these areas giving those businesses an opportunity to thrive without having to commit to large premises. 

And it seems that investors are noticing this trend too with reports of the potential for up to 120 local community food halls across the UK. As more of us look to continue to work from home on a regular basis after the pandemic, the innovative and agile landlord is recognising the potential in pre-purposing assets to create these type of food halls which in turn drives up footfall and spend in the area and, eventually, can lead to further regeneration of communities.

Until now, we have looked to retail to save our high streets. However, with the current crisis in retail hitting some of the biggest names and the ever increasing presence of online shopping, the focus is changing and it looks like food halls might be might be a tasty option.