Retail

Ballarat's retail industry plays a very important role in the local economy and employs over 6,000 people. Of those employed in this sector, 41% are employed in personal and household goods retailing, 38% in food retailing, 18% in motor vehicle retailing and the remaining 3% in other retailing.

The retail industry has experienced a long period of sustained growth of approximately 3.4% per annum. This growth is forecast to continue for at least the next ten years.

Ballarat is a regional retail hub, with a catchment of over 192,000 people and a trading area which includes neighbouring municipalities and extends into Western Victoria. There is a considerable variety of retailers in the city, ranging from national retailers, commercial and light industrial retailers, to niche retailers.

The total value of Ballarat's retail spend is approximately $810.4 million per year. It is estimated that Ballarat residents account for 70% of the total retail spend ($572.4 million), the wider Ballarat trading area accounts for 15% ($119 million), and visitors account for the remaining 15% ($119 million).

It is further estimated that the average annual per capita retail spend for a Ballarat resident is $7,757 per person. This consists of a per capita spend of $4,051 in food retailing, $1,493 in bulky goods retailing, $1,697 in non-food retailing and $516 in retail services.

The shopping precinct with the highest retail spend is in the Ballarat Central Business District (CBD) which includes the Bridge Mall, Sturt Street and Central Square, accounting for 51% of the total retail spend.

It is estimated that there is 208,000m2 of occupied retail floor space in Ballarat, distributed across a range of different shopping precincts.

Over the next ten years it is anticipated that Ballarat will require an additional 69,300m2 of retail floor space to accommodate increase in demand.

In particular, it is estimated that a further 8,200m2 will be required for food retailing, 47,300m2 for bulky goods retailing, 9,300m2 for non food retailing, and 4,500m2 for retail services.