During the first quarter of this year, the Scottish vacancy rate remained 15.7% for the fourth consecutive quarter.
The latest Scottish Retail Consortium and Local Data Company figures showed that on the high street, vacancies also remained unchanged at 14.8%.
Shopping centre vacancies worsened marginally to 20.6% in the first quarter, from 20.5% in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Meanwhile, retail park vacancies remained unchanged at 9.8% and continued to be the location with the lowest vacancy rate.
David Lonsdale, director at the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “These figures underline the torpid recovery in Scotland’s shop vacancy rate on the two-year anniversary of shops re-opening after the second pandemic lockdown.
“The level of unoccupied retail premises remains stuck at a fifth above pre-pandemic times and Scotland’s recovery from the pandemic has been weaker than in the ten other nations and regions in Great Britain.“
He continued: “The cost of operating remains an acute issue, at a time when many stores are having to shell out capital expenditure to refit stores, install machines and systems to accommodate the proposed Deposit Return Scheme.
“We hope that as part of his proposed ‘new deal’ with business, the First Minister will make good on his promise to look again at business rates, including mirroring the rates relief offered elsewhere.”
Lucy Stainton, commercial director at the Local Data Company, said: “The stabilisation of vacancy rates is partially indicative of operators, in the main, having a better than expected Christmas, but coming into Q1 still cautious and biding their time to see how various macro-economic factors play out into 2023.
“This slowdown in activity along with the balance between pockets of growth versus sustained cost pressures has meant the first part of 2023 has seen comparatively slower structural change.
“That being said, whilst there has been a slowdown in the growth of independent businesses, we are seeing a number of chains return to focus on acquisitions and we predict that activity levels should ramp up between now and the end of the year, as the challenges operators face begin to ease up, with operators adapting their portfolios to meet current consumer demands, within this economic climate.”
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