When Retail Space Makes Sense
Medical Office Today | By: Carrie Rossenfeld
More and more medical practices are opening offices in retail centers, and many physicians and experts say the decision has everything to do with business sense – either maximizing real estate and marketing dollars, or providing a location that is most convenient for patients. While traditional medical buildings will always have their place in the community, retail centers offer physicians a viable competitive alternative.
“Physician groups are looking for high-exposure locations,” says Ken Weston, a principal at Miami-based Kenneth Weston & Associates, which develops, leases and sells medical office buildings.
Experts and physicians point out that retail settings can offer medical practices access to signage, drive-by traffic and the sheer volume of people visiting a retail center in a given day – which can be even higher if the center is new, unique or cutting edge.
“I thought having a professional building combined with a new-concept outdoor-mall venue would be a good mixture,” says Michael Ross, D.O., one of the The Palms’ first medical tenants.
There’s a synergistic relationship between retail centers and medical facilities, according to Weston. “While a patient may be going through a procedure, his or her family can go to the retail area of the complex, dine and shop, and pick up the patient on the way out.”