5400 Forest Drive, Columbia, SC 29206 For Sale

The Gardner Company is pleased to exclusively present 5400 Forest Drive, a newly constructed (2025) 7,035 SF multi-tenant NNN retail strip center in Columbia, SC. The property is 100% occupied by three nationally recognized, corporately guaranteed tenants: Chipotle Mexican Grill (15-year term), Starbucks (10-year term), and Stanton Optical (10-year term). All three leases feature 10% rent escalations every 5 years throughout the base term and option periods, providing investors with reliable, growing income from day one.

TENANT PROFILE

Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) occupies 2,325 SF with an annual rent of $152,500 ($65.59 PSF) and a lease expiring January 2040, with four 5-year renewal options remaining. Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX, BBB+ rated) occupies 2,500 SF at $182,000 per year ($72.80 PSF) through April 2035, with four 5-year options. Stanton Optical occupies 2,210 SF at $88,400 per year ($40.00 PSF) through June 2035, with three 5-year options. The newly built structure comes with transferable warranties.

LOCATION & TRADE AREA

The property sits at the main entrance to East Forest Plaza, a dominant 540,000+ SF Walmart Supercenter and Sam's Club anchored power center. With the center fully leased, there is significant spillover traffic to this outparcel. The site benefits from outstanding visibility and accessibility at the intersection of Forest Drive (29,400 VPD) and direct access from I-77 (96,100 VPD). The adjacent Walmart Supercenter is the most visited in a 15-mile radius and ranks in the top 75% statewide per Placer.ai.

Nearby co-tenants include Publix, Sam's Club, Lululemon, HomeGoods, Sephora, Bath & Body Works, J.Crew, Anthropologie, Trader Joe's, and many more — creating one of the strongest retail corridors in all of Columbia. Additionally, Fort Jackson, the largest U.S. Army training facility in the country, is located directly adjacent to the power center, providing a built-in, captive consumer base of 16,000 residents including 3,500 active duty military members.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Within a 1-mile radius, the average household income exceeds $145,000 — nearly double the national average of $80,000. The 5-mile trade area encompasses 153,000+ residents across 61,000+ homes, with a median home value over $430,000 within 1 mile. The surrounding retail corridor boasts 1.3M SF of retail space with just a 0.5% vacancy rate and 22,800+ SF of positive absorption year-over-year (CoStar).