Europe needs additional 37msf of last-mile space over next five years

Online retail sales are forecast to increase by 48 percent over the next five years across the top seven ecommerce markets of mainland Europe, according to Knight Frank’s European Logistics Report 2022.

As a result of this increase, global property advisor Knight Frank estimates that an additional 3.5 million square meters (37.7 million square feet) of last-mile logistics space will be needed across these countries before 2026.

Each €1 billion ($993 million) in online retail sales requires 24,000 square meters (258,000 square feet) of urban logistics space. In France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Poland, online retail sales totaled €293 billion ($291 billion) in 2021, with an online penetration rate of 15.6 percent. Penetration rates are expected to increase across these markets over the next five years, averaging 19.3 percent by 2026. This is expected to drive online retail sales to €434 billion ($431 billion) — a €142 billi