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The specialist business property adviser said buyers did not appear to be deterred by any short-term decline in consumer spending.
As a result, Christie & Co’s retail team sold 41% more convenience stores than it did pre-Covid and subsequently recorded a 1.5% rise in its retail price index for 2022.
According to the company’s annual Business Outlook report, released today, buyers continued to outstrip the number of stores available, which often resulted in competitive bidding and an average of 7.5 offers for each business.
This figure has been steadily increasing over the past few years, Christie & Co said.
The report also notes that while some of the larger corporates have scaled back their new development plans, they continue to churn their portfolios, “which provides a fantastic opportunity to the wide pool of independent buyers seeking sites, with profitability and growth potential becoming key considerations in light of increasing operational costs”.
Looking to the year ahead, Christie & Co predicted that sellers will need to be realistic about pricing, to reflect the performance of their business and a new cost base.
Price expectations will be a key focus for 2023, it added.
According to Christie & Co, consumers have become more conscious of their overall expenditure, yet convenience retail is arguably better placed than other industries to weather 2023’s anticipated headwinds, as they offer essential local services.
Steve Rodell, managing director of retail at Christie & Co, said: “We enter 2023 on the back of a very busy 2022, when activity levels surpassed modest expectations that were set during the Covid years.
“Appreciating the economic climate, we are very encouraged by the healthy number of deals we are taking into this year.”
Meanwhile, trading conditions in the forecourt market had bounced back well in the aftermath of the pandemic, Christie & Co said, with fuel volumes now back at 92% of pre-Covid levels.
Buyers continue to look favourably at petrol stations, and sites sold through Christie & Co in 2022 achieved an average of five offers per transaction, the company said, “reflecting the strong ongoing demand.”
This caused a 1.5% increase in Christie & Co’s retail price index for 2022.
The growth of other income streams such as ‘fast-moving convenience goods’ was also identified in the report as a key trend shaping the market, with 88% of the UK’s petrol forecourts now featuring a retail offering, 31% of which are a full convenience store.
