Basically there are four directions, which are of importance. It started in the 60-ies with the Systems-Theory of Talcott Parsons which postulates the development of  so called ” evolution universals”. He argued that, like Darwin`s evolution of biological organisms, societies progress through their  “capacity for generalized adaptation” to their environment. This is achieved mainly through the development of specialized institutions to perform the social functions necessary to meet increasingly specialized needs (structural differentiation). Evolution is then from traditional to modern societies, and progress can be charted via bureaucratic organization, money and market complexes, social stratification, cultural legitimation and the emergence of generalized universalised norms.

Seymor M. Lipset advanced Parsons` theory  and developed a casual connection between economical development and democratization.  According to this, a growing GDP entails a better education, growing prosperity, tolerance, moderate working style of policy, a consolidation of civil society and eventually democratic structures.  This steps of development are essential for the neoliberal paradigm which focuses the free market economy with its constitutive criteria ( e.g. private ownership, free price formation, freedom of competition).

This so called Theory of Modernization and Parsons` Systems Theory expanded into the paradigm of the neoliberal institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (Bretton-Woods institutions). While this neoliberal model of development has been implemented on several countries of the third democratization wave (like India, Latin-America, Portugal) more and more criticism began to rise. Mainly the over- simplification as well as the missing  explanation for the economical development without further democratization such as in several Arabic countries have been criticized.

New approaches in the transition research began to become more and more accepted. The publication of Huntington`s  “Clash of Civilization” in the beginning of the 90-ies focused on the cultural aspects of countries in transition. Cultural theorists assume a close relationship between the secularization of a society and its ability and  success in developing democratic structures. Therefor some societies  just cannot be democratized because of their special religious-cultural roots which cannot be just replaced by new institutions and values.

Another branch of research are the stakeholder theories, which look on the microscopic level at the small elite-groups which seem to control the transition processes in a country. According to this, different  stakeholder combinations can be identified as well as possible activities and developments  be fore-casted. This is the main advantage over the Systems and Modernizing theories.

All in one the four theories complement one another so that a stakeholder analysis cannot be made without a system theoretical background. The multidimensional question of the  success of the Czech transition strategy as well as the initial situation at the retail market  will be targeted in the next post.

The collaps of the old socialistic system ushered the former Eastern Bloc states in a new era. The transition from the command towards a free market economy has been a tour de forces which ment a radical social and political change.
This thesis focuses on the transitional process at the retail market which is supposed to be “most sensitive to changes”.
Due to the political and economical changes in the Czech Re-public in the beginning of the nineties, this market underwent significant re-structuring, which had an impact on the real estate market, the supply and demand situation as well as on the spatial structure of the city of Prague.
The co-operation between the major stakeholder groups – urban planning, developer, real estate and trading companies – is of primary importance for the empirical analysis of the thesis. Several experts have been interviewed concerning the above mentioned context in Prague.

In the first place it`s intresting to look at the theory, which I`ll introduce to you in the first part of this post-series.
Then we`ll have look at some examples of retail projects in Prague to visualize the current situation.
In the third part, I`ll analyse the stakeholder co-coperation as well as the impact on the urban planning in Prague.

During the economic transition in the Czech Republic since 1990  there`ve been  started reforms on several levels. Restructuring processes in policy, economics, society as well as administration have been initiated by Vaclav Klaus and the so-called “Shock-Treatment”. This transition methodology should guarantee a fast transition from a centrally planed- into a market economy.

A significant role played the restructuring of the retail sector, which is very sensitive to economic changes. It`s sudden expansion had several impacts on real estate markets as well as the city structures. Most important processes if the transition in retail are first, a creation of a estate market, second, a diversification of city functions, third, a scarcity of land in the city. The logical consequence of this development is a dislocation of retail to the periphery of the city (“Greenfield Site”) and therefore a  declining buying power in the city.

Parallel to structional changes in the retail sector, an alteration process started also on the state-administration level. The abolishment of socialistic planning ministries and the formation of new governmental bodies led to several administrative gaps, which diminished just years later. Deficiency of competence and force of achievement as well as the absence of a city development plan gave international investors plenty of rope in their location decision strategies.

In the course of reform consolidation and elaboration of a strategic city development plan for the next two decades until 2020, the line-up of stakeholders in Prague retail began to change.

In the context of those developments the exiting question of distribution of power and competence  in terms of location decision processes in Prague retail sector will be analyzed and partly answered in my theses.

By means of 4-5 retail projects out of different phases of transition  (break, growing, orientation, modernization) shall be exemplified  the formation and change of stakeholder line-up as well as their location decision processes.

Changes of the spacial retail allocation structure (city vs. periphery) and its importance in terms of city planning strategies are further aspects of transition of retail in Prague.