Surviving the storm

[Editor's Note: Ian Ritter is taking a much deserved vacation over the next week, and GlobeSt.com retail reporter Debra Hazel is filling in for him on Counter Culture. Please be nice.]

“When you’re in the middle of the storm, all you can focus on is the rain around you,” Taubman Centers COO William Taubman told CNBC yesterday, referring to the uncertainty around commercial real estate.

Some specialty apparel stores stores are showing signs of life, but commercial real estate still has a long way to go, he noted. With some $300 billion to $400 billion of debt to be financed, with no liquidity in sight, he said, the hole is still pretty deep.

Retailers Say Rent Relief Is Working

Another interesting article appeared today on rent relief at shopping centers.

Apparently Starbucks has had success in receiving concessions from landlords, in its quest to lower rents by as much as 25% at some of its locations. Additionally, jeweler Zale Corp. earlier this week joined the ranks of retailers looking to catch breaks, and we wrote about Charming Shoppes’ strategy yesterday.

RECon Report: What Is Going On???

OK. Things at the International Council of Shopping Centers RECon conference in Las Vegas are getting a little confusion. One person tells us that retailers are getting rent reductions and someone else says that they’re not budging on giving concessions. Someone says the recession is going to be over by the end of the year, and someone else will say that the commercial real estate industry will feel pain through 2012.

Our head is spinning, and it’s not just the heat.

At Least Taubman Has a Good Attitude

Mall owner Taubman Centers recently put out its annual Black Friday survey, and it almost sounds hopeful. About 8,000 people responded to the online poll at its malls’ websites, and nowhere is there mention of a recession.

While only 9% said they would spend more than last year’s Black Friday, an impressive 60% said they planned to spend the same amount. On average people will spend $400 on the biggest holiday shopping day, while 42% said they’d continue to shop through the rest of the weekend.