The German retail market continued to show dynamic performance in the first half of 2026. Approximately 183 million potential customers were registered in the 25 most visited shopping streets by the end of June, representing a slight decrease of 0.8% compared to the previous year. These deviations, which showed a decrease of almost 3% in June and an increase of just under 2% in May compared to 2025, are primarily attributed to weather-related influences. This results in an average of approximately 7.32 million people per shopping street in the ranking of the top 25 shopping miles.
Alongside this stable footfall, the retail market recorded a high volume of space turnover. At around 238,000 m², the space turnover was above the average since 2020 (approximately 228,000 m²), even though it fell 5% short of the remarkable previous year's result of 251,000 m². A significant factor for the strong balance in 2025 was re-lettings of department store spaces, which accounted for 44,000 m², or 17% of the total volume, in the first two quarters of the previous year alone. In the current reporting period, 26,000 m² (11% of the volume) in former Galeria and fashion department stores have already been reallocated, underlining the ongoing dynamism in this segment.
International players shape market development
International retailers, in particular, are contributing significantly to the current market development. Almost 15 market entries have been recorded since the beginning of the year, a number that already exceeds the level of the entire year 2025. New players include the American activewear brand Alo Yoga in Berlin and the outdoor equipment supplier Yeti in Munich. Brands from the USA represent the second most active region of origin among international labels, with a share of 12%. Danish brands lead with 17%, closely followed by Asian players with 10%.
- —Several international brands such as Miniso, Pop Mart, and UOUOROSE (Asia), Bershka and Stradivarius (Inditex), Only & Sons and Name it (Bestseller), and Skins Cosmetics (Netherlands) pushed forward their expansion plans.
- —The gastronomy sector also recorded expansion tendencies, with restaurant chains such as Burgermeister, 60 Seconds to Napoli, and Goldies opening new locations.
- —The food sector accounts for 22% of lettings and openings; the fashion segment reached 28% of all transactions.
- —Christoph Scharf, Managing Director of BNP Paribas Real Estate GmbH and Head of Retail Services, highlighted that the diversity of brands and concepts demonstrates the broad international demand for inner-city retail spaces. The rapid further expansion of many of these retailers after market entry indicates good sales potential in German city locations.
The upward trend in inner-city locations is also underscored by the development of prime rents. Of the 115 shopping streets in A- and B-cities analysed by BNP Paribas Real Estate, 9% show slight rent increases. This exceeds the proportion of shopping miles with decreasing values, which stands at 7%. For the majority of prime locations, approximately 84%, stable prime rents without significant changes are still to be observed.
