The growing need for community-based healthcare is set to create opportunities for the retail sector across Europe, according to new research from CBRE.
The report draws on data from CBRE’s proprietary European Shopping Centres Performance Index to examine portfolio-level trends across fitness, healthcare and wellness (FHW) categories in retail schemes across Europe.
The amount of floorspace in CBRE’s portfolio occupied by fitness tenants has more than doubled since 2019 and according to the research, assets with FHW occupiers have seen stronger footfall recovery. Between the beginning of 2024 and July 2025, these assets saw average footfall broadly in line with pre-pandemic levels (+0.1%), while assets that lack these occupiers have seen footfall average 4.7% lower than 2019 levels.
At a country level, Sweden has been identified as the most developed market, boasting the greatest number of occupiers across the fitness and healthcare categories within its 15 largest shopping centres. Over 60 healthcare occupiers are present in Sweden’s top schemes. Family health clinics, physiotherapy, and vaccination clinics all feature extensively in Sweden’s top shopping centres, with some schemes having over a dozen of these occupiers.
The UK is the most developed wellness market, but scores below average for fitness and healthcare. The growth of wellness provisions has been supported by the creation of planning Class E in 2020, allowing for greater flexibility and ease of transition to these uses from traditional retail.
In contrast, some of the major European markets achieved much lower scores, suggesting potential for growth. The Netherlands and Italy score below the European average for all three types of occupiers, while Spain has a low level of healthcare provision in its top schemes. Germany, the largest Continental Europe market, scored below average for both fitness and wellness.
“Maturity levels are mixed across the region, with some markets in an embryonic phase of mixed-use development and healthcare provisions in their tenant mix,” said Matt Gillson, Senior Director in CBRE’s Retail team. “Landlords and asset managers have the opportunity to develop these categories and broaden the appeal of their schemes, taking confidence from the outperformance of those that are already doing so.”
Demographic projections suggest a significant opportunity to integrate healthcare into retail schemes in the UK and Spain. These markets are expected to see the greatest increase in both the number of over 65’s, and urban inhabitants, while also having a low existing provision of healthcare in their top retail schemes. In the UK, the NHS’s ten-year plan to shift services from hospitals to community-based care is also expected to act as a driver.
Gillson concluded: “The ageing population will only increase demand for such facilities further. In the UK specifically, the shift to community-based services creates an opening for retail schemes to host health centres and clinics, supporting the Fit for the Future initiative across the country.”
