Recovery? Real, respite or rubbish?
The last two weeks have seen a plethora of data about the economy and the state of retail in general. Today the latest ONS figures show retail sales up 5% year on year for December
The week of reckoning – what the Christmas trading results say!
Firstly, may I take this opportunity to wish you a very Happy New Year! I think that 2014 is going to be a very interesting year for retail and is going to be one of polarisation b
2013 vs 2014. My last blog post of the year!
As we close for the Christmas period it always aids reflection of what was in 2013 and what might be in the year ahead. I have put down a few summary thoughts in this respect in no
Blockbuster – the next step in High Street evolution
Next week sees the closure of all Blockbuster shops. From having had 528 shops it will disappear completely. Woolworths was the same but had over 820 shops and that disappeared fiv
What the numbers behind the autumn statement for the High Street really mean
The autumn statement can be considered as good news for our town centres. Some we had heard prior with Hugh Pym’s (BBC) scoop on the 2% cap but the two surprises for me were the
Future Towns
Yesterday I had the pleasure of presenting to the London Stansted Cambridge Consortium event on Future Towns held at Sadler’s Wells in London. I was but one of a number of keynot
What is a healthy high street?
Today has been an interesting news day with two, much commented upon, fast growing occupiers of our high streets stating the value they add economically through employment and foot
The real challenges facing the High Street!
Many column inches are written on stats from the High Street such as the recent ONS sales figures (-0.7%) and the BRC drop in footfall. The same happens when we publish vacancy rat
Business Improvement Districts and their role in place management.
I had the pleasure of speaking at the British BIDs conference this week in London. BIDs, as place management entities, are growing significantly and were borne out of their success
The two screens to cinema!
Yesterday I attended a Cushman & Wakefield event that covered the cinema market. It was about ten years ago that everyone was saying that cinemas would be extinct, as everyone