Leasing retail space seems like it should be easy. You just drive to shopping centers which are near your house and select one which is convenient for you. Then you call the leasing agent and ask them to send the lease. Then sign the lease, mail it to them and you are in business -- right? Of course, this is just about the worst way to approach leasing retail space.

Leasing retail space begins by deciding upon the type of retail or service business. That decision is beyond the scope of this article. Once you have determined the type of retail business, your first step in leasing retail space is to research your competitors and the industry.

Start by preparing a map of space leased by your firm and your competitors firm within your metropolitan area. Either color code or use a number system to identify which leased spaces are occupied by each of your competitors. If you are contemplating a ubiquitous type of business such as a nail salon or convenience store, map properties within a sector of the city or metropolitan area.

Next review the map and analyze store locations for trends. Are well-established professional firms already in the business? How many stores should they have in the metropolitan area? What is the distance between stores? How would you describe the level of income, education and growth for the areas they have chosen?

Next, visit the retail space in your metropolitan area occupied by your competitors. What types of retail had they chosen? In other words, are they in unanchored strip centers, shadowing anchor strip centers, anchor strip centers, anchored neighborhood centers, unanchored neighborhood centers, community centers, regional malls or freestanding retail locations? If they are in a shopping center, what type of space do they have? Is it an end cap, in-line space, or an elbow space? Are they on the first floor or the second-floor? Make notes on their signage, visibility, and ingress and egress from the center. Are they in a location with easy access convenient to public transportation?