Cost class by type and size
CHART 20
Service charge by type and size (£ per sq ft)
For most types of shopping centre there definitely appear to be economies of scale in action - generally the larger the centre, the lower the service charge. This year's data does however throw up an anomaly in the form of the Part Enclosed centres. This anomaly appears to be driven by a marked increase from 2006 in security and cleaning costs in medium sized part enclosed centres.
As per the 2006 Retail OSCAR this category displays the least variance between large and small centres at £0.85 per sq ft, however rather surprisingly small part enclosed centres show the lowest service charge at £3.43 per sq ft while medium centres are the most expensive at £4.28 per sq ft with large centres at £4.22 per sq ft.
Enclosed air-conditioned, enclosed non air-conditioned and open centres all reflect economies of scale with for example large open centres being the least expensive at £1.85 per sq ft, medium open centres at £2.46 per sq ft and small open centres the most expensive at £3.25 per sq ft.