The call comes as a Dublin cafe and delicatessen closes its doors and lays off 60 staff, blaming high rent for the decision.
Director Torlach Denihan said 30,000 people lost their jobs in the sector last year and many shop workers face redundancy unless rents are addressed.
He said retailers have been cutting prices in a bid to up consumer spending and combat cross-border shopping but many are struggling against a background of falling sales and high rents.
Mr Denihan warned that many smaller businesses could face closure, while larger to medium size retailers could be forced to cut staff.
He said retail rents in Ireland are among the highest in the world and he has called for landlords to be more flexible.
He said the Government should facilitate a process to work with landlords and the retail sector to bring down rents.
Separately, a survey has delivered a setback to hopes of a recovery in the service sector of the economy, as activity last month fell at its fastest rate since July.
The NCB Services Purchasing Managers' Index recorded 44.4, down from 48.3 in December. Any figure below 50 means activity fell, and the service index has now been below this level for two years.
NCB economist Brian Devine said new orders fell back sharply, indicating that the big fall in activity was not all linked to the cold spell at the start of the month. He said the figures highlighted how fragile domestic demand was in the Irish economy.
The report showed that while new orders fell overall, there was a rise in export orders.
Meanwhile, Carluccio's - a Dublin company specialising in Italian food - has closed its doors to customers and laid off its 60 staff.
The Dawson Street cafe and delicatessen has told staff it will not be able to reopen unless it can negotiate a new deal on rent with its landlord.
A statement from Carluccio's said its rent was struck near the peak of the property boom in 2007 and it had been seeking to reach agreement on a new deal since December 2008.
It said it had succeeded in reducing other costs but had been unable to reach an agreement on rent. The company said it believed its business was viable if the rent issue could be resolved.
Carluccio's said the closure would also affect around 80 of its suppliers.
