Retail, chains push: '6 thousand new openings planned for this year'

The expansion of modern trade chains is accelerating. Almost 6 thousand sales outlets will open during the course of the year, creating at least 35 thousand jobs. These are the forecasts of the Confimprese Study Centre carried out with Global Strategy. This is the best figure since 2019, the year of the first survey, with +6% over 2025.

The survey was carried out on the Confimprese membership base and virtually all members, 97% to be precise, expect new openings. The trend is more pronounced for other retail (electronics, gyms, personal care, furniture, tlc, books).

At 60%, it was 50% in 2025, the percentage of companies claiming to be impacted by weak consumer spending on their development plans is growing. The sector to which they belong weighs heavily: closures are planned by 80% of retail companies in clothing and accessories compared to only 25% in catering. The fashion sector continues to suffer from weak consumption. "The uncertainty linked to the war in the Middle East is affecting the spending choices of families, and in this context retail companies are operating in a more prudent and selective framework because consumption is reacting in the short term while companies' investments are looking at 3 and 5 years," explains Mario Resca, president of Confimprese. Moreover, the sector is suffering from a structural shortage of around 10,000 professional figures including salespeople, shop assistants, waiters and lounge staff'.

The most dynamic segment is other retail: almost 2,900 openings are expected during the course of the year and the sector is developing particularly rapidly thanks to franchise networks. Slightly more than 1,700 openings are expected in commercial catering with a focus on travel, city centres, shopping centres and retail parks. In clothing and accessories some 1,300 openings are expected, a lower pace than last year. Three quarters of the chains prefer to focus on shopping centres, followed by shopping streets and, more generally, urban areas and retail parks.

The planned closures are limited because companies prefer to refit to modernise and renovate the shop. The aim is to create stores where, in addition to experiential spaces, customer services and integration between the different sales channels are offered under the banner of omnichannelality. Innovative models adopted above all in catering, where new consumer concepts are being developed between food, entertainment and conviviality.