Retail is concentrated in areas where demand is high. A measure of market potential can be used to calculate place-specific demand for retail services. The effect of distance on market potential depends on the willingness of consumers to travel for the products they purchase. The spatial reach of demand is frequently operationalized using a distance-decay function. The purpose of this paper is to estimate such distance-decay functions for different branches of the retail sector. The paper uses spatial data from the Stockholm region in Sweden. The results indicate that, in line with theory, there are indeed differences in the distance decay of demand among retail subsectors.

In this paper, we employ geo-coded data at a fine spatial resolution for Sweden’s metropolitan areas to assess retail co-location. Retail clusters and their place in urban space are assessed from several angles. The probability of a specific type of retail unit to be established in a 250 by 250 m square is modelled as a function of (i) the presence of other similar retail establishments, (ii) the presence of stores that belong to other retail sectors and (iii) other characteristics of the square area, and its access to demand in the pertinent urban landscape. The analysis clarifies which types of retail clusters one can expect to find in a metropolitan region, as well as their relationship to the urban landscape. We analyse three distinct types of stores: clothing, household appliances, and specialized stores. Stores with high intensities of interaction are co-located, and predominantly located close to the urban cores, consistent with predictions from bid rent theory and central place theory. We further document negative location tendencies between shops that sell frequently purchased products and shops that sell durables. Moreover, our results highlight the importance of demand in the close surroundings, which is particularly strong for small-scale establishments.

How important is regional hierarchy for retailers’ productivity? This paper investigates the determinants of independent retailers’ productivity in Sweden between 2002 and 2008 with respect to market size and regional hierarchy. Using an accessible market potential approach, the impact of the potential demand in close proximity, and in the region is investigated separately for stores in central and peripheral retail markets. The findings suggest that the market size in close proximity has a higher impact on the productivity of stores located in central markets, whereas the market potential in the region has similar productivity returns for both stores in central markets and stores in non-central markets.

Retail city: the relationship between place attractiveness and accessibility to shops. Spatial Economic Analysis. This paper explores the role of retailers as an urban amenity. Using data for Swedish rural and city municipalities for 2002–08, ‘accessibility-to-shops’ measures are constructed for the shops in the municipalities and the hosting regions separately to examine the relationship between consumption possibilities and place attractiveness in a spatial continuum. Place attractiveness is proxied by a Q ratio for Swedish housing investment based on Tobin’s Q. Access to stores within municipal market boundaries is found to be relevant for the place attractiveness of city municipalities, whereas no such relationship is evident for rural municipalities.

零售城市：地方吸引力与商店可及性之间的关联性。 Spatial Economic Analysis. 本文探讨零售业作為城市设施的角色。本文运用瑞典乡村和城市行政区自2002年至2008年的数据，分别建构在行政区和其所座落的区域中的商店之 “商店可及性” 方法，检视空间连续区中的消费可能性和地方吸引力之间的关联性。地方吸引力由根据托宾Q比率的瑞典住宅投资Q比率进行代理。研究发现，行政区市场边界中的商店可及性，与城市行政区的地方吸引力有关，而乡村行政区中则未发现此一关联性.

Une ville de détail: le rapport entre l’attractivité d’un endroit et l’accessibilité aux magasins. Spatial Economic Analysis. Cet article cherche à examiner le rôle que jouent les détaillants comme équipement urbain. Employant des données auprès des municipalités rurales et urbaines en Suède pour la période allant de 2002 jusqu’à 2008, on construit séparément des mesures de ‘l’accessibilité aux magasins’ pour les magasins situés dans les municipalités et dans les régions d’accueil afin d’examiner le rapport entre les possibilités de consommation et l’attractivité d’un endroit le long d’un continuum spatial. L’attractivité d’un endroit est représentée par un ratio Q pour l’investissement dans le logement en Suède basé sur le Q de Tobin. Il s’avère que l’accès aux magasins au sein des limites des marchés municipaux a un rapport avec l’attractivité des municipalités urbaines, tandis qu’il n’existe aucun rapport quant aux municipalités rurales.

Ciudad minorista: la relación entre el atractivo del lugar y la accesibilidad a los comercios. Spatial Economic Analysis. En este artículo se analiza el papel de los minoristas como amenidad urbana. A partir de datos de municipios rurales y urbanos de Suecia entre 2002 y 2008, se realizan por separado mediciones sobre la ‘accesibilidad de las tiendas’ para los comercios de los municipios y las regiones anfitrionas para examinar la relación entre las posibilidades de consumo y el atractivo del lugar en un entorno espacial. El atractivo del lugar está representado por un cociente Q para la inversión sueca en vivienda basada en la Q de Tobin. Se observa que el acceso a los comercios dentro de los límites de los mercados municipales es relevante al atractivo del lugar de los municipios urbanos, mientras que esta relación no es evidente en los municipios rurales.