South Florida’s retail market is as active in leasing and development as it’s been in years. Stiles chief development officer Bob Breslau fills us in on the details. Bob and other industry gurus will be on hand on April 1 at Bisnow's South Florida Retail & Hospitality Summit at the InterContinental Miami (sign up here).

The rush is on among grocery stores to find locations in South Florida. Like night follows day, grocery stores follow rooftops. Now that infill urban housing development has picked up, Bob says, grocery chains are vying for bigger market share. (One fresh produce section to rule them all.) Not just Publix—a longstanding, aggressive player in the market—but also Fresh Market, Trader Joe’s, Sprouts, Walmart and others, all of which are hunting for new locations.

For mid-sized retailers, however, the shortage of vacant land in Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties poses a problem—they might not be able to expand as much as they want. Developing a retail site often means finding an existing building and tearing it down, Bob says, which isn't always easy (physically or emotionally). Smaller retailers have things a bit easier, since they’re able to work their way into smaller or mixed-use developments. Pictured: Stiles’ Shops at One Plantation in Plantation, which will open later this year.

Specialty retailers still have a keen interest in downtown Miami and Brickell, both of which are attracting high-end retail, but also a new appreciation for the Arts District. The Arts District, in fact, is becoming the place to open a new shop among carriage trade stores.