Kathmandu moves across the road on Richmond’s Bridge Road

Outdoor adventure store retailer Kathmandu has relocated to a new shop on the struggling Bridge Road discount shopping strip in Richmond.

Kathmandu will lease a 758-square-metre shop at 549 Bridge Road in Richmond in a five-year lease with a five-year renewal option in a deal negotiated by Colliers International’s Mike Crittenden.

The shop was previous occupied by Pulse Pharmacy.

The rental terms have not been disclosed, but Property Observer understands that current new leases on Bridge Road are being negotiated between $350 and $450 per square metre.

The range is quite broad, reflecting the fact that there are many different types of retail properties along this strip, and various locations.

The lease was negotiated on behalf of lessor Bridge Road Investments.

“Proving location is everything, Kathmandu has relocated from directly across the road into a superior tenancy offering significant exposure with two street frontages,” says Crittenden.

“Kathmandu’s relocation confirms the importance of location and prominence to the success of bricks-and-mortar retail,” he says.

Bridge Road currently has a vacancy rate of around 11%, up from a vacancy of 2.9% over the past two years.

In September, Property Observer counted 25 "for lease" signs along Bridge Road between Punt Road and Church Street.

Mark Ashton, Kathmandu’s property and leasing manager, says moving to the new store is part of its store network strategy of “securing high -xposure locations in Australia’s key retail strips”.

“In recent times, Bridge Road has received some negative press but we believe it holds its position as one of the city’s most popular strips.”

According to a Knight Frank survey, the prime retail suburban vacancy rate in Melbourne had climbed from 3.2% to 5.3% over the past two years.

Church Street, Brighton, had the lowest vacancy rate, followed by High Street, Armadale, and Acland Street, St Kilda.