The latest figures from a new report called “How Global is the Business of Retail” show that London is the highest-ranking city in Europe for international retail expansion.

The report which was produced by CBRE identified 123 global cities which were targets for major retailers to expand into. London placed fourth in the global rankings, behind Hong Kong, Dubai, and Taipei. The UK as a nation ranked third overall for new retail entrants, behind only the UAE and Hong Kong.

Food and Beverage companies and luxury brands are the driving force behind retail expansion in London. There were 54 new retail entrants in the UK and the two above sectors accounted for over 60% of new retailers. International brands including Canada Goose, Reserved, and Sonos made London debuts this year amongst others.

Of the new entrants to the UK market, 40% were brands from the Asia-Pacific region and food & beverage companies accounted for a quarter of new market entrants – an increase of 9% from 2016.

Here at Robert Irving Burns, we have recently let out space to a number of high end luxury brands. These include Minotti Cucine which is a minimalist Italian furniture company, 5mm Design – residential interior design company, and Joshua Kane a luxury tailor who produce both ready-to-wear and bespoke suits. To view our fantastic selection of Central London retail spaces available, do not hesitate to contact a member of our dedicated commercial lettings team.