Retail co-location ranking system

The Woodfine co-location methodology is operationalised as a named-anchor combination matrix — a deterministic algorithm that scores each hypermarket anchor location based on the convergence of secondary and tertiary retail and civic categories within defined catchment radii.

The system produces a 12-rank index mapped to five quality tiers, visualised on the Geographic Information System (GIS) platform at gis.woodfinegroup.com using a warm-to-cool colour scale: deep amber (★★★★★ Rank 1, highest) through pale blue (★ Rank 5, lowest). The map-facing labels — Regional, District, Local, Fringe — follow the ICSC hierarchy described in tier nomenclature, and qualification gates are detailed in the V3 catchment ranking methodology. This approach provides an objective, capital-validated framework for assessing commercial site defensibility.

The named-anchor model

Every co-location site in the index is anchored by a single hypermarket or large-format general merchandise operator — Walmart, IKEA, Carrefour, and their regional equivalents. The anchor is the foundational requirement: no site without a qualifying anchor is admitted to the index. The full chain-to-family mapping is documented in the retail brand family taxonomy.

Secondary and tertiary operators are classified into four deterministic categories:

A secondary operator qualifies as co-located when it falls within a defined secondary catchment radius of the anchor. Tertiary operators are scored within a wider catchment radius.

The 12-rank matrix

The combination of present categories determines the site rank. There are twelve named combinations in the matrix, ordered by structural complexity and commercial validation:

Anchors present with no qualifying secondary or tertiary operators are excluded from the ranked index.

Quality tiers and distribution

The twelve ranks are grouped into five quality ranks to provide a high-level view of market quality.

Quality rank note. This article's five-rank scale (Rank 1 = highest, Rank 5 = lowest) describes the quality index rendered on the map — a distinct, named-anchor combination matrix, not the platform's cluster tier system. Individual co-location clusters within a Regional Market are separately classified by the current tier system — Regional, District, Local, Fringe — described in tier nomenclature and the cluster scoring glossary. The five-rank quality scale and the four-tier cluster classification measure different things: the quality rank scores commercial density across the full 12-rank index; the tier classifies a cluster's anchor composition and catchment rank against fixed gates. They are not interchangeable, and neither is a numbered "T1/T2/T3" scale — that numeric scheme was retired platform-wide on 2026-05-16 and does not describe any current cluster.

★★★★★ Rank 1 — Full co-location

Rank 1 only. All four categories present. The highest designation. The anchor operates within the secondary catchment radius of both a hardware superstore and a warehouse club, and within the wider tertiary radius of both a healthcare facility and a university. This indicates that all four independent capital-selection processes have converged on the same node. This is the rarest and most selective rank in the index.

★★★★ Rank 2 — Strong co-location

Ranks 2–3. Three categories present. The anchor is paired with both a hardware superstore and a warehouse club, plus one of the two tertiary categories. The commercial co-location is structurally complete; one institutional dimension is absent. This rank remains uncommon, though less rare than Rank 1.

★★★ Rank 3 — Partial co-location

Ranks 4–7. Two categories present. The commercial baseline for the index. Includes the Rank 4 combination (anchor + hardware + warehouse) as well as single-secondary combinations supported by tertiary institutional presence. This rank accounts for the largest share of qualifying sites.

★★ Rank 4 — Limited co-location

Ranks 8–10. One category present. The anchor has one major co-located secondary or tertiary support. Site quality in this tier is highly market-dependent.

★ Rank 5 — Anchor only

Ranks 11–12. Tertiary-only or Warehouse-only. The hypermarket anchor is present, but the primary commercial co-location secondaries (hardware and/or warehouse club) are mostly absent. These sites represent the floor of the index.

Calibration and scarcity

The secondary catchment radius is a tunable parameter that determines index density. The platform periodically recalibrates this radius to preserve index scarcity, ensuring the highest tier remains a small minority of all anchor sites rather than growing to include a large share of the index.

Market adaptation

Each of the eight retail markets uses a dedicated region configuration that maps local operators to the canonical anchor and secondary roles. This ensures the algorithm applies consistent structural logic across jurisdictions where different brands fill equivalent commercial functions (e.g., Costco in Canada, Makro in Europe).

Integration of an aviation facility dataset into tertiary scoring is a planned target for future iterations of the ranking matrix. [ni-51-102] [osc-sn-51-721]

Provenance

• Verification: Rank distribution and matrix logic confirmed against the GIS platform build configuration.
• Forward-looking disclosure: Aviation dataset integration into tertiary scoring is an intended target, labeled per [ni-51-102].

See also

• Retail co-location methodology
• Retail co-location intelligence — overview
• Co-location anchors

References

• Big-box store — Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-14
• DBSCAN — Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-14

Data Sources

Map and location data © OpenStreetMap contributors / ODbL.

Copyright © 2026 Woodfine Capital Projects Inc. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International.