Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 6

MARKETWATCH

Strong Retail Sector
Adapts to Connect with Customers
By Gerry Donohue

T

FMI forecasts that
retail construction
put-in-place will
continue to grow
in 2019, up by
4 percent, but
then decline by
3 percent in 2020
and 1 percent
in 2021, before
rebounding to
grow by
3 percent
in 2022

NATA_RASS / ISTOCK EDITORIAL / GETTY IMAGES

he predicted retail apocalypse due to the
explosive growth of online stores never happened. Construction put-in-place in the retail
sector grew by more than 11 percent annually
from 2013 to 2018, outpacing most other sectors
and the construction market as a whole.
"The retail sector is more fluid than most,"
says Greg Steinmetz, who leads the retail practice
at Dunham Associates, a mechanical and electrical consulting
engineering firm in Minneapolis. "It's quicker moving, spotting
trends early and responding rapidly."
Rather than roll over due to the onslaught of virtual shopping,
the brick-and-mortar retail sector has adapted to a new market
reality and changed to meet the demands of the buying public.
"Our clients are very savvy," says Jennifer Bennett, who heads
the Quad Cities office of Shive-Hattery. "They are thought
leaders and are ahead of the market."
For example, in recent years the construction focus in the
sector has shifted. "Rather than new construction going up,
we're seeing a shift to remodeling," says Jason Wollum, who

6

ENGINEERING INC.

MAY / JUNE 2019

leads the retail practice at Henderson Engineers in Kansas City,
Missouri. "A lot of the experts say
we have more retail space in the
U.S. than we should have."
The demise of several large
retailers, such as Sears and
Sports Authority, has opened
opportunities for other
companies. "We're doing a lot of
work subdividing those big-box
spaces," says Steinmetz.
The retail sector lives and dies by
the national economy. When markets are growing, people are buying
and retail clients are building.
When the economy stumbles, so
does the retail sector.
"The past three or four years
have been incredibly strong," says
Wollum. "In the short term, we
expect the market to continue to
perform well."
Many economic forecasters
anticipate that the nation's record
economic expansion will slow-
and perhaps fall into recession-at
some point in the next two years.
Reflecting this expectation, the
management consulting firm FMI
forecasts that retail construction
put-in-place will continue to grow
in 2019, up by 4 percent, but
then decline by 3 percent in 2020
and by 1 percent in 2021, before
rebounding to grow by 3 percent
in 2022.
TAPPING INTO
OMNICHANNEL

"The buzzword in the industry
right now is omnichannel,"
says Wollum. "It describes how



Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019

Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019
Contents
From Acec to You
Market Watch
Legislative Action
The Private Side
Acec 2019 Engineering Excellence Awards
Immediate Action Required
Effective Team Building Strategies
In The News
Mergers And Acquisitions
Members In The News
Business Insights
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Intro
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Cover2
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Contents
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 2
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 3
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - From Acec to You
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 5
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Market Watch
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 7
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Legislative Action
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 9
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - The Private Side
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 11
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 12
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 13
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 14
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 15
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 16
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 17
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Acec 2019 Engineering Excellence Awards
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 19
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 20
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 21
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 22
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 23
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 24
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 25
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 26
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 27
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 28
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 29
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 30
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 31
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 32
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 33
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 34
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 35
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 36
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 37
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Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 39
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 40
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 41
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 42
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 43
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 44
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 45
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 46
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 47
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 48
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 49
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 50
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 51
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 52
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 53
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Immediate Action Required
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 55
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 56
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 57
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 58
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 59
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 60
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 61
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Effective Team Building Strategies
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 63
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 64
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 65
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 66
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 67
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - In The News
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 69
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Mergers And Acquisitions
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 71
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 72
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Members In The News
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 74
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - 75
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Business Insights
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Cover3
Engineering Inc. - May/June 2019 - Cover4
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