Retail rents in Tienmu have seen impressive growth in the past year, due to strong competition between luxury-product retailers, real-estate analysts said yesterday.
"In 2002 retail rents in the Greater Taipei area didn't see much growth; however rents in the Tienmu area saw a 10 percent surge over 2001," said Kao Nien-chi (高念琦), a market analyst at H&B Realty Franchise System Co (住商不動產).
The prime retail district in Tienmu falls between Chungshan N Road Sec 7, Tienmu E Road and Chungcheng Road Sec 2, where international brands such as Nike, Mont Blanc, Dunhill, Chanel as well as the Takashimaya Department Store (大葉高島屋) are located.
Retail space in Tienmu is nearly NT$7,500 per ping (3.3m2), Kao said.
Retail rents have been hit by the slow economy as consumer belt-tightening continues. However, luxury-brand retailers may be spared, because consumption of brand-name goods is always strong in Taiwan, Kao said.
Tienmu enjoys a 100 percent occupancy rate for retail space as potential tenants are waiting in line to take over empty space, said Chiang Wan-ching (
With a Sogo Department Store and Warner Village movie complex scheduled to open in the second half of the year on Tienmu's Chungcheng Road, many boutique operators have asked H&B to find them retail space in the neighborhood.
Meanwhile, an influx of brand-name stores near the Grand Formosa Regent Taipei on Chungshan N Road Sec 2 has also pushed up rents in that area.
Luxury product makers including Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Giorgio Armani crowd the streets near the Japanese business hotel.
"Retail rentals in that area saw a significant jump over the past two years," said Phina Su (
Rent in that district is about NT$6,000 per ping, a 71 percent jump from NT$3,500 per ping in 2001, she said.
According to recent statistics from H&B, Chunghsiao E Road Sec 4 between Pacific Sogo Department Store and Ming Yao Department Store is the nation's prime retail area.
Retail space in Dindhao goes for NT$11,500 per ping, the most expensive retail space in the city.
The second-highest area for retail rent is around the Taipei Railway Station at NT$9,000 per ping, the statistics said.
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