Hobart CBD retail tightens to 4.7 per cent, trailing only Sydney nationally

Hobart's CBD retail market has recorded a vacancy rate of 4.7 per cent, the second tightest of any capital city surveyed behind only Sydney, and a result that reflects the enduring strength of a compact, walkable city centre with a loyal resident customer base and a visitor economy built around experience rather than transit. With just 11 vacant tenancies recorded across 233 surveyed street fronted shops, Hobart's CBD is operating at near full capacity, a sharp contrast to the elevated vacancy levels seen across most other CBD retail markets nationally. This sits alongside an office market vacancy of just 5.2 per cent as at January 2026, the tightest of any Australian capital, underscoring just constrained the Tasmanian capital remains across both sectors.

Retail have had mixed results around the country for both landlords and tenants so its encouraging to see continued confidence in Hobart specifically, with chains including Rebel and LEGO committing to the market, while established operators Kookai and Mecca are backing themselves with significant investment, including Mecca's $2.5 million refurbishment. The willingness of large national and multinational retailers to commit capital to a market of Hobart's scale speaks to genuine confidence in the city's trading conditions.

Unlike larger capitals where retail performance is closely tied to office attendance and commuter foot traffic, Hobart's CBD draws its strength from a different source. The city functions as a genuine seven day destination, attracting both residents and visitors who come to eat, explore, and engage with the cultural fabric of the city rather than simply pass through it on the way to work. This distinction shapes the retail mix in ways that set Hobart apart from every other city in this survey.

The most striking feature of Hobart's retail composition is the presence of recreational goods retailing, which accounts for 6.9 per cent of all tenancies, a category that registers as negligible or absent in other CBD retail cores nationally. Outdoor and adventure clothing retailers including Kathmandu, Paddy Pallin, and The North Face sit alongside running specialists, sports stores, games retailers, bookshops, and music stores. This cluster is not incidental, it is the retail expression of Hobart's identity as a gateway to Tasmania's natural environment and its well established arts and culture scene.