South Yarra is the ultimate lifestyle destination brimming with energy, enterprise, world-class culinary experiences, fashion, and hospitality.
Key economic indicators
- 25,147 people live in the precinct.
- 35 per cent of people are aged 25 to 34, and 23 per cent are aged 35 to 44.
- 29 per cent of households are high-income, with a median weekly income of $2,067.
- 2,447 businesses in South Yarra generated $773M spend with the largest sector being retail (32 per cent)
- Residents of South Yarra spent $130.1M locally in 2021, with visitors spending $480M.
Read the Place Activation Plan for South Yarra or find out more about South Yarra in the economic snapshot below.
Economic Snapshot
October 2024 to March 2025(PDF, 403KB)
What's happening in this precinct?
South Yarra’s economy is fairly evenly divided between discretionary retail, food retailing and tourism and entertainment. Restaurants in particular drive the tourism and entertainment sector, accounting for approximately the same spend amount as supermarkets. Approximately one third of spend in the precinct is spent by residents of the area, and of suburbs outside Stonnington, South Yarra – West (west of Punt Road), Richmond (South) – Cremorne and Albert Park are significant contributors to the local economy. While vacancies on Chapel Street are comparatively high at 13.12%, Toorak Road has been performing strongly with vacancies down to 8.33%.
The economy
- Daytime spend – $152.0M
- Night-time spend – $77.1M
- Total local spend – $229M (down 1.7% from last year)
- Total customers – 269K (down 2.9% from last year)
- Highest spend day – 21 December 2024
- Highest weekly spend day – Saturdays
- Spend origin – 36% residents, 64% visitors
| October-March monthly spend |
|
2023-24 |
2024-25 |
| October |
$38,015,795 |
$38,510,000 |
| November |
$38,586,667 |
$40,516,000 |
| December |
$43,119,543 |
$41,481,000 |
| January |
$34,237,475 |
$34,169,000 |
| February |
$34,861,249 |
$35,175,000 |
| March |
$36,482,342 |
$39,255,000 |
|
October 2024 - March 2025 top spend categories
|
|
Category
|
Subcategory
|
Total spend
|
|
Discretionary retail
|
Other discretionary retail
|
$22,275,000
|
|
Department stores, clothing and accessories
|
$31,796,000
|
|
Food retailing
|
Supermarkets
|
$38,018,000
|
|
Groceries and other food retailing
|
$20,651,000
|
|
Tourism and entertainment
|
Takeaway and fast-food outlets
|
$9,696,000
|
|
Restaurants
|
$42,659,000
|
|
Pubs, taverns and bars
|
$11,882,000
|
|
Cafes
|
$7,356,000
|
|
Attractions, events and recreation
|
$4,040,000
|
Vacancy and occupancy
- Vacancies now filled – 40 since August 2024
- Changed tenancies - 30 since August 2024
- Newly vacant premises - 30 since August 2024
|
|
Jan 25 vacancy rate
|
Change
|
|
Chapel Street
|
13.12%
|
Down 0.76%
|
|
Toorak Road
|
8.33%
|
Down 1.45%
|
Street activity
- Busiest days – Fridays
- Busiest times – 5 PM
Visitor demographics
- Top customer age band – 25-34, 31.9% of visitors
- Top customer life stage – Young singles and couples, 34.2% of visitors
|
Top 5 non-Stonnington spend origin locations
|
|
South Yarra – West
|
$9.8M
|
|
Richmond (South) – Cremorne
|
$4.8M
|
| Albert Park |
$4.4M
|
| St Kilda – West |
$3.4M
|
|
St Kilda East
|
$3.2M
|
Data sourcing: Pedestrian activity data current as of 2 April 2025. Source: City of Stonnington Pedestrian counters. Spend data current as of 20 April 2025 and is subject to revisions. Sourced from banking transaction data. Vacancy data current as of January 2025. Source: Vacancy Review, prepared by E3 valuations and commissioned by City of Stonnington.
Previous Snapshots