Poland’s retail property market saw a recovery in terms of the provision of new shopping center space in 2011, at 487,000 sqm – a y/y increase of 17 percent – delivered last year, according to a recent report by Jones Lang LaSalle. The largest share of the new space, some 31 percent of the total stock, was built in small cities with populations of fewer than 100,000 individuals, the study said.

Demand for space in large cities remained stable. Smaller and saturated markets however, were carefully scrutinized by potential tenants, leading to some of them seeing downward pressure on rent levels. Nevertheless, this did not apply to the best schemes, for which there is now high demand and which often see long waiting lists, the report said.

Currently, there is approximately 707,000 sqm of retail space under construction in Poland, of which 496,000 sqm is scheduled to be completed this year. Cities with populations below 100,000 are expected to increase their share in the total volume to over 45 percent of the 2012 pipeline.

“Poland is now frequently perceived as separate from the rest of the CEE basket,” Edyta Potera, retail department director at Jones Lang LaSalle in Poland, said in a statement. “International brands monitor the economic situation in Poland and see confirmation of their belief that it is stable and has good prospects for growth,” she added.

She pointed out that because of the size of the Polish population, business development opportunities are not limited only to Warsaw but are also offered by a number of smaller markets outside the capital.

“This factor enables particular brands to optimize their development strategy and makes the Polish market more attractive for many groups of tenants,” Ms Potera said.