Originally published on March 24, 2023 by Holly Dutton for UrbanLand Magazine.

There’s perhaps no more famous saying in retail than “location is everything.” But is it? Based on ULI’s recently published report, Successful Retail: How 14 Shopping Centers Are Thriving Today, in a post-pandemic retail world, location is indeed an important driver of success—arguably the key driver—but it is not the be-all and end-all.

It’s also important to define “location.” The study’s authors pointed out that location encompasses a whole range of qualities that go beyond just geographic coordinates. What kind of visibility and access the property has, the demographics of the area, and what competition exists, if any, in the area, all play a role in what’s meant by location.

ULI’s researchers delved into the common threads connecting the shopping centers finding success and what the industry can learn from them. Despite the wide range in size, age, and geographic location among the shopping centers studied, some key factors stood out to researchers during the case studies.

Going beyond location, more is better, the study concluded. Whether it’s more road traffic, more visibility, more shoppers living close by, and even more competition can help draw more customers to a shopping center. “All of these can raise the odds of success for a retail project on a particular site,” wrote the study’s authors.