Chiado is the most expensive area in Portugal to open a shop

The Chiado area, in Lisbon, holds the most expensive rents for commerce of the country, standing at 1,380 euros per year for each square meter, after a 15% valuation this year, according to a study disclosed this Wednesday.

On the Main Streets Across the World 2017, published every year and which comprehended 68 retail locations in the world, the consultancy firm Cushman & Wakefield concluded that in Portugal, “the most expensive location is Chiado, in Lisbon”, which registers a 15% valuation in its reference rent to 1,380 euros per year for each square meter.

Nonetheless, this location “maintained the same position in the ranking as in 2016, standing at 33^rd place” worldwide, the study adds. The ranking is headed by the Fifth Avenue in New York (USA), which is still where the highest rents for shops can be found, costing up to 28,262 euros per year for each square meter.

As for Portugal, the director of the research department and consultancy of Cushman & Wakefield, Marta Esteves Costa, stated that a “strong growth of the street commerce all over the world justifies Lisbon’s stability in the ranking”. She also stated that “the attractiveness of the street commerce”, not only in Lisbon, but also in Oporto, “has remained the same throughout 2017, because of the growth in tourism and also because of the significant increase in city rehabilitation projects, which have brought not only quantity, but quality of job offers in retail”.

Data from Cushman & Wakefield also state that the market values in the remaining areas of Lisbon and Oporto have suffered a positive evolution since 2013. The highlight in Lisbon goes to Avenida da Liberdade (1,140 euros per year for each square meter) and Baixa (Downtown Lisbon, 960 euros per year for each square meter), and the Santa Catarina Street (690 euros per year for each square meter), in Oporto.