Hong Kong retailers move back to street level as rents fall
Mar 22nd 2026 · Hong Kong
Facing weaker demand and lower rents, former 'upstairs' operators like Hing Kee Java are opening ground-floor stores and experimenting with pop-up leases to regain street visibility and customers.
- Retailers are moving back to street-level shops and testing short-term pop-up leases as rents decline and demand weakens.
- Hing Kee Java Edible Bird’s Nest will open a 3,000 sq ft ground-floor outlet in Tsim Sha Tsui for about HK$200,000 a month.
- The same East Ocean Centre space fetched about HK$388,700 in 2013, illustrating a steep reset in rents from peak levels.
- The shift follows weaker post-pandemic tourism and more cautious local consumer spending that reduced the appeal of higher-floor shops.