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According to representatives of JLL, recently the streets in Moscow that have become pedestrian or have undergone reconstruction and are within walking distance of attractions can already be called tourist. The number of stores on them has increased, and the share of available space has significantly decreased: by the end of the 1st quarter of 2017, vacancy in central street retail fell to 8.4%, approaching the pre-crisis level of 2014 (8%). For comparison, last year the figure reached 13%.

A good example in the company is called Kuznetsky Bridge, where flagships of such world brands as Nike, Massimo Dutti, Adidas Originals, KIKO Milano, Omega have recently opened.Of course, the influx of tourists has played an important role in increasing the interest of retailers to the central streets, – tells Natalia Ozernaya, Deputy Head of the Street retail Department at JLL in Moscow. For example, in Moscow, flagships on Kuznetsky Most, Nikolskaya Street, Petrovka, Tverskaya and other streets count on the tourist flow when making a decision. According to forecasts Alexandra Oshurko from Praedium, boulevards in the city center could become popular for tourist retail in Moscow, but they are "constantly busy with festival retail". «There were traditionally «restaurant » streets: alleys in the area of Patriarchal Ponds, Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street, – continues Mr. Oshurko. "There is quite active traffic there, and in the future retailers could consider placing on them." Among the relatively new places for tourist shopping and pastime in the company Knight Frank there are outlet centers «Outlet Village Belaya Dacha», Vnukovo Outlet Village, «Fashion House Outlet Center», some of the objects on the territory of the MIBC "Moscow City", as well as unique art spaces.

Tourists coming to Moscow for shopping spend an average of about 10 thousand rubles a day, shares Anna Sibirkina from China Friendly. "In general, tourism revenues are playing an increasingly prominent role in the economy of the city of Moscow," the expert reports. In 2015, the share of tourist consumption in the gross regional product of Moscow amounted to more than 4%, or about 457 billion rubles. This is 11.5% higher than in 2014."

In 2019, about 8 million tourists will come to St. Petersburg, of which up to 3.5 million will be foreigners, according to the socio-economic forecast presented in October 2016 by the Committee on Economic Policy and Strategic Development.

However, while tourists are interested in luxury, premium or with "unique characteristics" products, the middle segment is emptying. "European tourists have little interest in shopping with us: outlets are developed in Europe, where, despite the fall of the ruble to the euro by half, brand prices are lower than in Russia," explains Alexander Oshurko. "For tourists from the regions, shopping in Moscow is relevant only due to the variety of brands presented, which are often not available in regional shopping centers."

As a result, despite many years of development expansion into the regions with statements about attracting first-tier brands to shopping centers, the tradition of buying in Moscow has not sunk into oblivion. It is precisely the return of buyers home, according to the interlocutors MM, that the key players will have to deal with in the coming years. 

Subject to further growth of tourism in Russia, JLL predicts the opening of stores in Moscow offering authentic products of Russian manufacturers. "I think we don't have enough luxury brands," says Indira Shafikova, Senior Executive Director of ITD Properties. – I would advise them to open where it already «works »: on Tverskaya Street, at the beginning of Kutuzovsky Prospekt. It will unmistakably be streets with significant traffic and demand. Their recognizability will also play into their hands, because they are in any reference books and information for tourists.

Behind the Chinese wall

Meanwhile, the majority of tourists who visited Moscow in 2016 (12.9 million) are Russians. About 2.5 million arrivals were provided by representatives of the CIS countries, and another 1.9 million visitors from abroad. 280 thousand people arrived from Germany in 2016, 140 thousand people from Turkey. Israel (130 thousand people), France and Italy (120 thousand people each), the United States and Great Britain (100 thousand people each) also formed flows of foreign visitors. However, Chinese tourists are in the first place, the growth in the number of which, according to the association "World without Borders", in 2017 was noted even in the traditionally unpopular period from January to March. In the first quarter of 2017, the visa-free Chinese group tourist flow to Russia increased 1.6 times; it is expected that by 2030 the number of tourist trips from China to Moscow will increase threefold.

According to the leadership of the Moscow Department and regional policy, last year tourists from China spent more than $ 1 billion in Moscow, and on average Chinese tourists spend from $ 2,000 per person per trip. The average purchase of a Chinese guest is estimated at 75 thousand rubles. Experts report that the growth is also associated with active advertising campaigns of Russian goods in China and the project "Red Tourism", which is dedicated to the communist past. "Chinese tourism has begun to set the trend of all inbound tourism, which is understood not only by specialists working in this segment, " now this trend is obvious to everyone, and retailers are making every effort to please the Chinese," thinks Svetlana Pyatikhatka, Executive Director of the tourism Association "World without Borders".

To be continued.

Author:Ekaterina Reutskaya

Photo: Shutterstock.com