Potential Office Depot/Staples closings couldn’t come at a better time for Tampa Bay retailers

If federal regulators approve Staples’ $6.3 billion deal to buy Office Depot, it will likely mean a number of those stores will go dark — and that could be a good thing for Tampa Bay retailers.

The retail real estate market in Tampa Bay is extremely tight, with less than 6 percent vacancy in any part of the region. That makes it extremely difficult for the new concepts looking at the market to find space in desirable areas, and rents aren’t quite high enough to justify the construction costs of… …read more