A lot can happen in a year. In terms of retail property, 2012 has seen some shifts in the market, as many retailers reassess their store portfolios in the face of a growing number of challenges.

A lot can happen in a year. In terms of retail property, 2012 has seen some shifts in the market, as many large-scale retailers reassess their store portfolios in the face of a growing number of challenges.

Over the past few months alone – the financial reporting season for many – B&Q said it would examine its portfolio to determine what size estate it needs in an “omnichannel world”, while parent company Kingfisher opened its 1,000th store worldwide; and research from business advisory firm Deloitte warned that retailers needed to downsize their store portfolios and focus on online opportunities.

Argos chief executive John Walden put the retailer’s store portfolio under the spotlight although few closures look likely at present, while the space race among the grocery giants has halted, with many now focusing on convenience formats; Morrisons, for example, is pushing its smaller M Local format and plans to add 300 convenience stores to its portfolio by 2014.

At the other end of the scale, 2012 brought the roll-out of Portas Pilots across the country – many are keeping a watching brief to gauge what innovative approaches might boost ailing high streets across the UK. In addition, industry heavyweights including Asda boss Andy Clarke, Alliance Boots’ Alex Gourlay and Morrisons chief executive Dalton Philips have all called on the Government for a freeze on business rates to prevent them having an even more damaging impact on the industry.

But despite such significant focus on change over the past year, retail property is a sector that requires more long-term planning and foresight. An about-turn or change of strategy is not easily executed, considering the considerable length of leases and time it takes for development – next year’s opening of Trinity Leeds is all the more anticipated for the dearth of openings elsewhere this year.

As our virtual round table shows, property directors face myriad challenges, and decisions are made on unique considerations – one retailer’s property priority is far down the to-do list as another.

But where the development dearth is hitting particularly hard is in retailers’ warehousing requirements. With new space all but dried up, retailers will have to be particularly forward-thinking – and, some say, risk-taking – to commission suitable properties to secure space requirements in the future.

Decisions over property portfolios are increasingly complex. The recession has painted an intricate picture of divides between regions and towns, and decisions to open new stores are based on extensive research and demographic factors.

In addition, there are retailers – both domestic and international – that are still expanding rapidly in the UK.

What is certain is that, whether because of the pressures of development stagnation or the emerging focus on multichannel retail formats, innovative rethinking of what the physical space should offer the customer is required. And with retail increasingly meshed into other uses of spaces, the next year is sure to bring further seismic change.