In October, 2005 CB Richard Ellis paid £20m for retail specialist Dalgleish & Co. CBRE's UK business was formed by a merger of Hillier Parker and Richard Ellis, so it already had a strong retail practice, but it clearly felt the need for the strong occupational focus that had been the hallmark of Dalgleish's approach.

And the move is already paying off: last month Marks & Spencer gave CBRE the plum appointment as its lead property advisor, a role it was unlikely to have won prior to the Dalgleish deal.

CBRE is not alone in wanting to beef up its exposure to retail: last month leading general practice surveying firm Savills bought Blair Kirkman for a rumoured £10m. The move follows Savills' purchase of SY Moorhouse Wright in Manchester and Mansfield Elstob Main in Bristol.

Like Dalgleish, Blair Kirkman had a strong agency focus. Chris Blair, who becomes head of retail in the merged business, says: "Savills' global reach and regional network will enable us to leverage our retail expertise, especially in the higher value investment and development markets whilst maintaining our market leading occupational specialism."

Few believe that the Blair Kirkman deal will be the last, but there are others who still extol the virtues of independence. Doug Stevens of Douglas Stevens & Co is one such and he believes slowing investment returns will actually drive clients towards the smaller firms. "In an ever tightening retail environment the industry`s favourite maxim `adding value` can no longer be achieved by sitting still and waiting for a yield shift - it is time to `put a brick on a brick`. To make a profit you now literally have to `build a profit`," he says.

"For the owners of shopping centres there are clear choices to be made," Stevens says. "For new-build premier league centres Lunson Mitchenall remain unassailable. Churston Heard and CBRE are hard to beat on mainstream letting instructions. For the more time-hungry hands-on regeneration projects, the smaller regional and London practices will allocate more time to adding value and building profit."

Other niche practices are thriving by providing a specialist service not offered by the majors. Shelley Sandzer, for instance, has evolved into a specialist in the catering market. Partner Ted Scharma says that it took a decade of getting close to the emerging restaurant and bar formats before the firm became recognised by the shopping centre sector.

"For us it began with high street acquisitions for brands like Pizza Express and Café Rouge," Scharma says, "but in those days the catering offer in most shopping centres just didn't match the quality of the retail."

All that's changed now, though. For instance, Shelley Sandzer introduced Conran's Zinc and Zizzi into Princes Square, Glasgow, and as consultant to the O2 centre on London's Finchley Road it convinced the developer to take on Nando's and Yo! Sushi for their first mall units.

Scharma is currently advising CSC on a number of its malls. For instance he's just completed a full review of the catering offer at the MetroCentre, and this has already resulted in Café Rouge opening in the Red Mall.

And at Lakeside he has advised on the creation of eight restaurant and bar units in the mall's new Boardwalk extension. Deals have already been agreed with La Tasca, Nando's, Café Rouge and Hannah Banana, with the other four under offer. "Two of the operators have never been in shopping centres before - they're cutting-edge high street operators," he says.

Scharma insists it's important to keep close to the brands, because catering is the fastest-moving area of retail. "From seed to tree is very quick in catering," he says.

Communicating benefit

Managing communications within the development process is now as fundamental to the success of a project as getting the right design and the most economic build. The range of audiences that impact upon any particular development is becoming increasingly complex, driven by new legislation and diversification of the media.

Communication now begins even before planning with its role in informing and consulting during the design phase. This has bred a new form of consultant, such as Halogen, that can manage the whole process, ensuring the project has a single strong consistent theme across all audiences.

Increased communication is also feeding back into the development process and defining how developers design and deliver projects. Schemes now have to be more robust with greater thought given to all aspects including social inclusion and sustainability.

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