Malls undergo revamp RETAIL landlords are preparing for a busy year as many embark on shopping centre redevelopments to entice consumers back to the malls. While many of their tenants are feeling the pressure of the internet, a high savings level by households and cheap overseas travel, the landlords are benefiting from a resurgence in demand for upmarket food courts and cinemas. AMP Capital Shopping Centre is one of the busier owners this year after its launch during the week of about $2 billion worth of redevelopments of centres across the country. These include Ocean Keys in Perth, Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast and Sydney's Macquarie Centre. According to the managing director of AMP Capital Shopping Centres, Bryan Hynes, the $390 million capital expenditure on the centre will make it the second-biggest mall in NSW. He said the group would use it as a blueprint for other centres across the country. Upon completion it will have an area of 136,000 square metres of food, retail and leisure outlets. "With 130 new specialty stores, we have something for every market," he said at the launch. The plans include a revamped David Jones department store that will be marginally smaller than other existing stores, but will offer customers a range of pick-up and internet shopping options. The development comes as new data revealed department store sales grew by 1.9 per cent in real terms in 2012 - that is, there was a 1.9 per cent lift in the number of goods purchased over the year. The chief economist at CommSec, Craig James, said 2012 was the strongest calendar-year performance in five years - the strongest since spending rose by 4.7 per cent in the 2007 year. Mr James said over 2012, supermarkets recorded the best real growth in spending in eight years with a growth of 4.3 per cent, which was the strongest since 2004. Food outlets such as butchers and greengrocers recorded the strongest calendar year growth in five years (5.3 per cent real growth). Electrical goods retailers had the best year in four years (6.2 per cent growth). And pharmacies recorded the strongest growth in three years (10.3 per cent). The data is positive for landlords who have chosen to focus on specialty stores in their renovations. But caution remains to the long-term future of a department store being the anchor of a centre. In 10 years it is expected that more focus will be made on upmarket restaurants, fitness centres and computer retailers as the main reasons to visit a mall. Consumers don't spend evenly over the year. If there are government hand-outs, major discounts, price wars or periods of more buoyant consumer sentiment sparked by firmer share or home prices, then consumers will spend," Mr James said. But once the purchases are made, then Aussie consumers may retreat to the sidelines for a while. In the coming two weeks Stockland, GPT Group, CFS Retail, Westfield and Westfield Retail Trust will report their earnings for the six months and 12 months ending December 31, 2012. Analysts are predicting the earnings will have grown at about 4 per cent across the groups, in line with inflation.