The Spanish cities climb to 11th and 15th place in the Hot Retail Cities 2024 ranking, carried out by the specialised publication Modaes and the retail distribution group Bestseller. The cities surpass Seoul, Berlin, Chicago or Shanghai when it comes to attractiveness in opening a store in their main commercial arteries.

Spain is the only European country that places two cities among the 20 best in the world to open a store, only equalled by Canada, with Toronto and Montreal, and surpassed by the US, which places New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Miami.

Serrano and Paseo de Gràcia are the streets most in demand by luxury investors for their stores

The ranking, which the magazine has been carrying out since 2018, seeks to analyse the conditions that a city presents as a potential market for an international retail brand. New York leads this list since its beginnings as the world capital of retail, followed by Paris, which overtakes London thanks to the celebration of the Olympic Games on the one hand and the economic performance of the United Kingdom in recent years due to Brexit.

For the real estate company CBRE, there is “significant interest” from international brands to establish themselves in the highest-level areas of the Spanish capitals. “Madrid and Barcelona are as attractive a destination for brands as London, Paris or Milan. In fact, expanding international operators consider both cities as a target for their next openings,” they say.

CBRE states that the main commercial hubs in Madrid are Serrano and Gran Vía, while in Barcelona, ​​brands focus mainly on Passeig de Gràcia and Diagonal. “Serrano and Paseo de Gràcia are the streets most in demand by international investors dedicated to luxury,” the real estate agency details. The consumer profile of both is both local and international. The average rental income in Serrano is 230 euros per square meter per month. The clients of Gran Vía are mostly tourists and it is the street with the highest rental income in Madrid, with 260 euros per square meter per month.