Mall by Mall: developers have stopped building large shopping malls
Developers are abandoning large-scale projects. In 10 years, the average size of a shopping center in Russia has decreased by more than 2.5 times, Izvestia has learned. This is due to the saturation of the market, rising construction costs and changing consumer behavior: buyers are less willing to go for "shopping for shopping's sake" and more often choose services and everyday services within walking distance. Against this background, large projects become more risky and take longer to pay off, while compact district shopping centers are easier to fill with tenants and better integrated into the daily infrastructure of residential areas, experts say. See the Izvestia article about how changing consumer habits are transforming the retail real estate market.
How shopping malls are changing
By the end of 2025, the average size of an commissioned shopping center in Russia decreased to 12.8 thousand square meters. m against 34.5 thousand square meters in 2015. Thus, over the past 10 years, the indicator has decreased by more than 2.5 times, according to the CMWP consulting company.
The reduction in the scale of new projects reflects structural changes in the commercial real estate market, the vice president of a large construction company confirmed to Izvestia. According to him, whereas in the mid-2010s developers were actively building large regional and sub-regional facilities, today demand is shifting towards more compact centers. According to CMWP, the share of district shopping malls in new construction in Moscow has exceeded 70% over the past three years, and the average size of an commissioned facility in the capital has more than tripled over the decade (12.4 thousand square meters).
The trend is also confirmed by other consultants. According to CORE data.For example, the average size of a shopping center being commissioned in Moscow decreased 2.8 times over the same period, to 15.1 thousand square meters in 2025, and in Russia — 1.75 times, to 19 thousand square meters. m. At the same time, the lowest figures were recorded in 2022-2024, whereas last year the average size of facilities was slightly It has increased due to the introduction of individual large projects, said the head of the CORE Retail Department.XP Evgeniya Prilutskaya.
Large shopping malls have lost some of their investment attractiveness due to market saturation and rising construction costs, said Alexey Chagin, Deputy General Director for Retail Real Estate at Central Properties. Such projects require more time to implement and carry increased risks of underutilization by tenants, Evgeniya Prilutskaya agrees. Although in conditions of expensive money, management companies are doing everything possible to show their operational efficiency, said Anna Krylova, Chief Financial Officer of ADG Group. According to her, modern shopping malls with a successful concept and a strong pool of tenants enter the market almost full, and the vacancy rate may decrease to 4-5% within a few months.
How consumers influence the situation
The change in the format of new projects is connected not only with the economics of construction, but also with the transformation of consumer behavior, experts say. According to Focus Technologies, the average daily attendance at shopping malls in Russia in January–May 2026 was 25-27% lower than the level of the same period in 2019. In Moscow, the decrease was 20-25%, depending on the format of the facility, said Mikhail Vasiliev, head of research and consulting at the company. This was the result of the growth of e-commerce, CMWP analysts believe. According to estimates by the Association of Online Trading Companies (AKIT), since 2015, the online trading market has grown more than 15 times, to 11.5 trillion rubles by the end of 2025.
Such changes have reduced the need for large shopping galleries, according to CMWP materials. Trips to such shopping centers are less and less often considered by consumers as an independent leisure format, explained Alexey Chagin. At the same time, customers often choose facilities within walking distance to solve everyday tasks such as grocery shopping, playing sports, visiting cafes, receiving services or issuing online orders, he listed. As an example of such a format, CMWP cites the "Meeting Place" network of regional centers, created on the basis of reconstructed Soviet cinemas. As of May, 26 such facilities were operating in Moscow.
The change in consumer habits also affects the structure of tenants, experts say. According to CORE data.For example, in Moscow, the catering category became the leader in the opening of new areas in shopping malls with a share of 23.8%. The indicator is also high in the field of services and services, as well as entertainment (a share of 8.8% in each category). According to CMWP, the largest share of tenants in district shopping centers are fitness clubs (24%), catering and grocery stores (13% each).
What will happen next with shopping malls
Experts interviewed by Izvestia believe that the current trend will continue in the coming years. The bulk of the new construction will fall on district shopping malls, lifestyle centers and retail spaces as part of multifunctional projects, Alexey Chagin explained. Evgenia Prilutskaya agrees with this. At the same time, according to her, new large-scale regional shopping centers will appear only point—by-point, mainly in large growing agglomerations. The dynamics of the retail real estate market will continue to be influenced by the cost of construction and the conjuncture of demand in the consumer market, the expert said.
The urban planning policy also supports the format, CMWP is confident. For example, since 2019, the Moscow City Hall has been implementing a program in the city to stimulate the creation of employment opportunities (MPT). The first shopping center within the framework of the "15-minute city" concept opened in 2024. By 2030, more than 270 such facilities with a total area of more than 8.3 million square meters will appear in the capital, Maxim Liksutov, Deputy Mayor of the capital for Transport and Industry, said in January.
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