Approximately 53% of Romania’s modern retail stock is more than 15 years old, with the share reaching 59% in Bucharest, according to a new Colliers report. The aging stock is shifting investment toward refurbishment, efficiency improvements, and the repositioning of existing properties.
The report, ExCEEding Borders Retail 2026: Maintaining Retail Excellence and Restoring Potential, covers shopping centres and other modern retail properties larger than 5,000 sqm in nine Central and Eastern European and Baltic markets. Its data reflect the market at the end of the first half of 2026.
According to the report, around 41% of Romania’s modern retail space is between 16 and 20 years old, while another 19% was built between 11 and 15 years ago. Only about 15% has been delivered during the past five years.
“Romania’s retail market has reached a natural stage of maturity,” said Simina Niculiță, director and partner for retail agency at Colliers. “Many of the shopping centres developed during the 2000s continue to hold strong market positions, but the expectations of both consumers and retailers have changed.”
Niculiță stated that cosmetic improvements were no longer sufficient, with owners increasingly required to reconsider tenant mixes, customer experience, building efficiency, and the role of shopping centres within their communities.
Investment is also expanding beyond visible design changes to include technical infrastructure and new technologies. Restaurants, entertainment venues, fitness facilities, healthcare, wellness, co-working spaces, and community services are occupying a growing share of shopping centres as owners seek to diversify footfall and reduce exposure to competition from online retail.
Romania’s retail stock is somewhat newer than that of several other regional capitals, Colliers said. While 59% of Bucharest’s stock is more than 15 years old, the share reaches 84% in Budapest, 76% in Riga, 70% in Warsaw, 63% in Prague, and 62% in Vilnius.
Romania has also added retail space more rapidly in recent years than several neighbouring markets. About 15% of its stock was completed in the past five years, compared with 3-4% in Poland and Hungary, and 9% in Czechia.
One example of repositioning is Agora Mall in Arad, a 36,000 sqm scheme developed in 2008-2009. After becoming almost entirely vacant in 2017-2018 following the departure of its grocery anchor, the property was modernised and reopened in August 2025 with retail, restaurants, services, a cinema, fitness facilities, and entertainment.
Similar restructuring projects are underway at Unirea shopping centres in Bucharest and Brașov, where leasable space is being reorganised to accommodate a broader mix of uses. Colliers is providing advisory services for all three projects.
However, not every aging property has the same prospects. Very old schemes in secondary locations may require investments that are difficult to justify, while established properties in central or otherwise well-connected areas may support major refurbishment, extensions, or redevelopment, the report said.
“The age of a shopping centre is not, in itself, enough to determine whether a scheme should be refurbished, extended, or converted,” said Liana Dumitru, retail agency director at Colliers.
She added that location, catchment area, occupancy, competition, and the adaptability of the building must also be considered.
Retail parks are at a different stage because they are generally newer than conventional shopping centres and continue to attract strong retailer demand. Investment in the format is focused mainly on energy efficiency, ESG criteria, accessibility, services, and customer experience.
Across all nine markets analysed, around 20 million sqm of modern retail space, nearly two-thirds of the total 33.3 million sqm, is more than 15 years old. More than 10.6 million sqm has been operating for over two decades.
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