Risk analysis: what if every financially weak big box tenant in the US went out of business? Big box retailers are 80% of the US retail platform. The way they go portends the state of the whole system. Most markets in the US are severed by about 100 big box brands – everything from Walmart to Walgreens.
Today, in each major US market, about 20 of the 100 big box companies are suffering financial stress. Many had problems well before COVID. Back in April of 2020, I realized that these weak tenants accounted for only about 6% of US retail space and, more surprisingly, they accounted for only 3% of the sales. If all the weak box retailers shut down, the remaining 80 retailers could easily absorb their sales.
About two thirds of these weak firms have already filed bankruptcy and most of them have reemerged with a fresh start and only a handful have been liquidated. A few others, like AMC Theaters have raised capital without bankruptcy. The system is very resilient. There is no retail apocalypse. It’s the circle of life – Simba defeats Scar.