TRENDS: Existing challenges only grew for retail sector in 2020 

Acadian Village Shopping Center on Perkins Road. (File photo)

While the pandemic did not decimate the retail sector as much as one might have predicted last year at this time, it hastened trends that were underway before the onset of COVID-19: Vacancy rates in local shopping centers increased to more than 10% for the first time since 2014, and the growth of online shopping exploded at an unprecedented pace.


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