This work
strives to create an accurate description of the processes taking place in the
Israeli retail and to unveil mechanisms underlying the observed structural and
spatial patterns. We seek an ordered pattern in the distribution of retail
facilities and to interpret this emergent order. To achieve this, we combine
approaches and techniques stemming from a number of different schools of
thought. The empirical data includes sizes and locations of modern retailers
and supermarkets for a number of years. Analysis of the sizes reveals an
exponential distribution, consistent across time and scale. These findings
signify a presence of self-organization and self-similarity in the structure of
retail sizes. In contrast, spatial distribution of retailers reveals no
organized pattern on a metropolitan scale, in spite of the multiple techniques
used in the analysis. The locations of modern retailers reveal a tendency to
cluster together, regardless of their sizes and with no clear affinity to
population or built area. The lack of spatial organization and hierarchical
structure in the distribution of modern retailers reveals the need for a
normative model. Optimization tests were performed to establish sizes and
locations of retailers, as well as order in which they should be constructed.
The results reveal that the actual sizes of modern retailers are larger than
the optimized ones. It appears that central locations should be constructed before
and in smaller sizes than the ones further away from the buying power. The
Israeli retail sector appears to be in need of a comprehensive planning policy.
