Retail and Shopping Center Developers Key Terms

Understand retail and shopping center developers key terms to optimize professional communications

Knowing retail and shopping center developers key terms is essential for any business person planning to build or design a new retail venue. Understanding the terminology helps one understand the legalities involved in the venture.

An understanding of retail and shopping center developers key terms helps a business owner convey to architects and builders exactly what they want. It demonstrates an extra sense of professionalism, which benefits both the business owner and the developer.

 

Retail warehouse

A retail warehouse is a large store that specializes in selling comparison goods that require extensive areas for display. These single-level stores traditionally concentrate on selling bulk goods for the household, although some sell other types of goods.
Try: The National Institute of Building Sciences website is a rich resource for those interested in learning about building retail warehouses. It defines different types of warehouses and offers floor plans and images for existing warehouses.

Brownfield sites

Brownfield sites is a term referring to previously developed sites, which businesses purchase for reuse or conversion. Sometimes developers demolish these buildings to design updated retail and shopping centers.
Try: The United States Environmental Protection Agency offers a detailed description of Brownfield sites on its website. It also links to other sites offering resources for grants and funding.

Development opportunities

Retail and shopping center developers look for development opportunities, which are areas and sites within a city that are open for new development. Sometimes these sites are vacant, and sometimes they hold properties with buildings that are no longer in use.
Try: Many states offer websites targeted directly for businesses interested in retail development, and the Arlington Economic Development website is a prime example of one of these resources.

Single, large amenity site

A single, large amenity site is a large site providing high-quality space and an ideal environment for a business user.
Try: IDEAS offers information on single, large community sites compared to other amenity sites. It shows statistics on development patterns and planning.

Retail floor space

Retail floor space refers to all the areas used for retail purposes. It includes all of the floor space used for retail in addition to the space used for staff facilities, storage and food preparation. It does not factor in parking.
Try: Marlite specializes in working with business developers to maximize the use of retail floor space. It offers both mobile and fixed fixtures for floor displays.

Urban design strategies

Site developers use the term "urban design strategies" as a spatial expression of policies for urban design, which generally include cities and towns. The urban design strategies provide a context for more clearly defined briefs and frameworks.
Try: ArchNewsNow.com offers a comparison of several urban design strategies aimed at North America.

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