How is your High Street doing?
Discussion
Ours was always the typical vibrant sea side town . It had the typical mix of the national chains like Woolworths , International stores, Banks , local stores etc etc .
We had four or five butchers shops ,several fishmongers, several greengrocers ,3 cinemas, cafes of various types, tailors etc .
The town has grown in my lifetime as far as houses are concerned but the high st has shrunk to under half the number of premises I remember from my youth .
Today we lost another local institution with the local areas butchers chain closing into administration.
How is your town doing ?
We had four or five butchers shops ,several fishmongers, several greengrocers ,3 cinemas, cafes of various types, tailors etc .
The town has grown in my lifetime as far as houses are concerned but the high st has shrunk to under half the number of premises I remember from my youth .
Today we lost another local institution with the local areas butchers chain closing into administration.
How is your town doing ?
grumpy52 said:
Ours was always the typical vibrant sea side town . It had the typical mix of the national chains like Woolworths , International stores, Banks , local stores etc etc .
We had four or five butchers shops ,several fishmongers, several greengrocers ,3 cinemas, cafes of various types, tailors etc .
The town has grown in my lifetime as far as houses are concerned but the high st has shrunk to under half the number of premises I remember from my youth .
Today we lost another local institution with the local areas butchers chain closing into administration.
How is your town doing ?
Woolworths and BHS have gone. We had four or five butchers shops ,several fishmongers, several greengrocers ,3 cinemas, cafes of various types, tailors etc .
The town has grown in my lifetime as far as houses are concerned but the high st has shrunk to under half the number of premises I remember from my youth .
Today we lost another local institution with the local areas butchers chain closing into administration.
How is your town doing ?
grumpy52 said:
Ours was always the typical vibrant sea side town . It had the typical mix of the national chains like Woolworths , International stores, Banks , local stores etc etc .
We had four or five butchers shops ,several fishmongers, several greengrocers ,3 cinemas, cafes of various types, tailors etc .
The town has grown in my lifetime as far as houses are concerned but the high st has shrunk to under half the number of premises I remember from my youth .
Today we lost another local institution with the local areas butchers chain closing into administration.
How is your town doing ?
You must be in Kent & re: JC Rooks.We had four or five butchers shops ,several fishmongers, several greengrocers ,3 cinemas, cafes of various types, tailors etc .
The town has grown in my lifetime as far as houses are concerned but the high st has shrunk to under half the number of premises I remember from my youth .
Today we lost another local institution with the local areas butchers chain closing into administration.
How is your town doing ?
Small (pop 5-6000) North Dorset town, was very much on the slide before Covid; we lost all three banks in very short order.
Then we had what one might call a good pandemic, people shopped locally and the little shops thrived. Even now there are definitely more people wandering round in the day.
There are currently no empty shops, apart from aforementioned banks.
Dorchester (the County town, pop . 20,000?), had markedly declined when I went there, to a shocking degree.
To my mind it seems the larger towns have been worst hit, while (reasonably affluent) little towns seem to be doing quite well.
Then we had what one might call a good pandemic, people shopped locally and the little shops thrived. Even now there are definitely more people wandering round in the day.
There are currently no empty shops, apart from aforementioned banks.
Dorchester (the County town, pop . 20,000?), had markedly declined when I went there, to a shocking degree.
To my mind it seems the larger towns have been worst hit, while (reasonably affluent) little towns seem to be doing quite well.
It's odd....My local main one is Chelmsford.
We've lost all the usual ones; Debenhams, BHS, etc. And there's a lot of empty stores which on first glance you would assume is an indicator of terminal decline.
Yet, there's a newish area (Bond Street) which is bit upmarket and on the occasions I've been there over the past few months, seems to be very healthy indeed. I believe the John Lewis there is one of the most profitable in the UK.
On Sunday, I was there in another little mall; HMV, Next, Clarks..... and others all 'seemed' to be doing OK. Plus two of the main car parks were full so there does seem still to be some business to be had.
Maldon has never really had much in the way of major high-street names but most of the retailers that were there 10 years ago or longer are still there. I know of at least two that are looking to take on larger premises.
We've lost all the usual ones; Debenhams, BHS, etc. And there's a lot of empty stores which on first glance you would assume is an indicator of terminal decline.
Yet, there's a newish area (Bond Street) which is bit upmarket and on the occasions I've been there over the past few months, seems to be very healthy indeed. I believe the John Lewis there is one of the most profitable in the UK.
On Sunday, I was there in another little mall; HMV, Next, Clarks..... and others all 'seemed' to be doing OK. Plus two of the main car parks were full so there does seem still to be some business to be had.
Maldon has never really had much in the way of major high-street names but most of the retailers that were there 10 years ago or longer are still there. I know of at least two that are looking to take on larger premises.
Must be doing pretty well - we have a cheese shop. Always a good sign 
Manchester suburbs - all the big names used to be in a nearby shopping mall but have migrated to the Trafford Centre so independents around here have always been popular and more have taken over in recent years. Mostly taps, bars, cafes and other eateries with a sprinkling of estate agents.
Manchester suburbs - all the big names used to be in a nearby shopping mall but have migrated to the Trafford Centre so independents around here have always been popular and more have taken over in recent years. Mostly taps, bars, cafes and other eateries with a sprinkling of estate agents.
This topic fascinates me and I have dabbled in town centre/regeneration stuff at work.
What the OP describes is typical of many towns: Thousands of new homes and a growing population, yet decimation of the high street/town centre continues.
But the issue is often a self fulfilling prophecy. People visit their town centre less, so some shops close, because of these closures even less people shop locally, and the cycle continues.
What the OP describes is typical of many towns: Thousands of new homes and a growing population, yet decimation of the high street/town centre continues.
But the issue is often a self fulfilling prophecy. People visit their town centre less, so some shops close, because of these closures even less people shop locally, and the cycle continues.
Indeed. It doesn't help that 'The High Street' closes just as people finish work, whereas the large supermarkets (that sell everything you'd want to buy, plus have free parking) are heaving with customers at 18:00 every day.
My local town council has bought up large chunks of the town centre shops and are redeveloping into units with subsidised rents to maintain 100% occupancy - we shall see if it works.
My local town council has bought up large chunks of the town centre shops and are redeveloping into units with subsidised rents to maintain 100% occupancy - we shall see if it works.
I must say, Reading and Wokingham high streets seem to be doing well compared to a lot of comparably sized towns.
Very few empty units on Broad Street.
Not one, not two, but three record shops!
It's mostly all chains though with very few independents, the Harris Arcade got wiped out over lock down but most of the old stalwarts are still there. The hat shop, Sound Machine, Hickies across the street and that other record/random memorabia store which no one can quite remember the name of. They've all been there forever and Sound machine in particular is always pretty busy. Prices are either in the range of online or better which definitely helps in this day and age, and that's before the "Can't be arsed to give any change" discount. I always pop in for 5 or 6 CDs.
Union Street is a sad case though, the last fishmonger closed in 2019. No more Smelly Alley, it's all phone case/tat shops now. Jacksons too, that was a delightfully eccentric shop and going there to be measured for your school uniform was a rite of passage for every school child in East Berkshire. It's sad to think I was one of the last to get the traditional change and handwritten receipt delivered via vacuum tube.
Very few empty units on Broad Street.
Not one, not two, but three record shops!
It's mostly all chains though with very few independents, the Harris Arcade got wiped out over lock down but most of the old stalwarts are still there. The hat shop, Sound Machine, Hickies across the street and that other record/random memorabia store which no one can quite remember the name of. They've all been there forever and Sound machine in particular is always pretty busy. Prices are either in the range of online or better which definitely helps in this day and age, and that's before the "Can't be arsed to give any change" discount
. I always pop in for 5 or 6 CDs.Union Street is a sad case though, the last fishmonger closed in 2019. No more Smelly Alley, it's all phone case/tat shops now. Jacksons too, that was a delightfully eccentric shop and going there to be measured for your school uniform was a rite of passage for every school child in East Berkshire. It's sad to think I was one of the last to get the traditional change and handwritten receipt delivered via vacuum tube.
It's worth noting that most of the surviving shops I mentioned adapted the thoroughly sensible practice of opening on Saturdays and closing one day during the week. Some of them have staggered closing times too, for example one shop opens 9-6:30 one day and 9-3 the next. It's the best of both worlds really. Everyone gets the chance to visit and the shopkeeper works the same or fewer hours.
BritishBlitz87 said:
It's worth noting that most of the surviving shops I mentioned adapted the thoroughly sensible practice of opening on Saturdays and closing one day during the week. Some of them have staggered closing times too, for example one shop opens 9-6:30 one day and 9-3 the next. It's the best of both worlds really. Everyone gets the chance to visit and the shopkeeper works the same or fewer hours.
Several restaurants locally are now closing for part of the week. It's annoying. One of them is a favourite of mine and now that people have started getting out and about again it becomes rammed on the days when it does open. The owner has, I think, become quite attached to only working two days per week.
That aside, I am not seeing a major high street resurgence. But certainly more people are around in the past month.
Along with the high st most of the pubs that are still open have certainly changed . We no longer have any that are just the local Boozer , most offer either food or music or both . A couple are offering specific group type nights ,women only social nights or day time meeting places where alcohol is the second choice .
Just wait until councils ban cars from the centers or charge them out of the centre for "emissions purposes".
They could just wait 5 years with ev in the ascendancy but there's no money in that or capability for long term thought process.
There will be another reason to charge by then and they still won't realise they caused the death of the high street and have been doing for years. It's easy to blame amazon etc.
They could just wait 5 years with ev in the ascendancy but there's no money in that or capability for long term thought process.
There will be another reason to charge by then and they still won't realise they caused the death of the high street and have been doing for years. It's easy to blame amazon etc.
gmasterfunk said:
Just wait until councils ban cars from the centers or charge them out of the centre for "emissions purposes".
They could just wait 5 years with ev in the ascendancy but there's no money in that or capability for long term thought process.
There will be another reason to charge by then and they still won't realise they caused the death of the high street and have been doing for years. It's easy to blame amazon etc.
Parking charges are one of the biggest arguments in our town . All the parking in the town is controlled by the council ,even at both the supermarkets that provide it . Most of the free car parks along the sea front are due to become pay and display which has already caused most of the sea front streets to become congested with parked cars .They could just wait 5 years with ev in the ascendancy but there's no money in that or capability for long term thought process.
There will be another reason to charge by then and they still won't realise they caused the death of the high street and have been doing for years. It's easy to blame amazon etc.
Our area is also due to have the bye laws changed to make parking on the pavement illegal, it's going to be fun seeing buses and delivery vehicles or dust carts trying to negotiate our streets which are mostly old ,narrow and pre date the time when private cars were so prolific.
As a blue badge holder I might stir it up and apply for a disabled parking bay .
gmasterfunk said:
Just wait until councils ban cars from the centers or charge them out of the centre for "emissions purposes".
They could just wait 5 years with ev in the ascendancy but there's no money in that or capability for long term thought process.
There will be another reason to charge by then and they still won't realise they caused the death of the high street and have been doing for years. It's easy to blame amazon etc.
If you take Nottingham as an example.They could just wait 5 years with ev in the ascendancy but there's no money in that or capability for long term thought process.
There will be another reason to charge by then and they still won't realise they caused the death of the high street and have been doing for years. It's easy to blame amazon etc.
They have made it difficult for car owners to drive into the city, and it is expensive to park when you're there.
They have created a tram network, which feeds the city from (mostly) the poorer areas of the city.
So they have discouraged the (generally wealthier) car owners from entering the city and encouraged the (generally poorer) tram passengers to go in. The city is on its arse. Who'd have thunk it.
It's a lesson in why provincial cities shouldn't delude themselves that they are London.
Truckosaurus said:
Indeed. It doesn't help that 'The High Street' closes just as people finish work, whereas the large supermarkets (that sell everything you'd want to buy, plus have free parking) are heaving with customers at 18:00 every day.
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Have to say that late night openings doesn’t really work and fails to pay it’s way. People talk about wanting the convenience to able to shop after work but they never do! After work people simply want to get home apart from a brief diversion to their local Tesco Express for that evenings dinner..
In a previous life I worked in retail and for a while in a destination shopping centre and opening hours were until 10pm. Outside of Christmas it was a waste of time. Nobody on their way home from a busy day at work were visiting.
Small town here and we seem to be holding up reasonably well.
Still got a bakers, butcher, fish shop, greengrocer, couple of hardware shops. Of course we also have the obligatory charity shops, coffee shops and hairdressers.
In fact we have 7 womens hairdressers
The bakers and greengrocer are both ‘community owned’ which doesn’t seem to make much difference in how they operate except for the bakers using volunteers for wholesale deliveries.
Still got a bakers, butcher, fish shop, greengrocer, couple of hardware shops. Of course we also have the obligatory charity shops, coffee shops and hairdressers.
In fact we have 7 womens hairdressers
The bakers and greengrocer are both ‘community owned’ which doesn’t seem to make much difference in how they operate except for the bakers using volunteers for wholesale deliveries.
valiant said:
....Outside of Christmas it was a waste of time. Nobody on their way home from a busy day at work were visiting.
What's people's views on Sunday opening? It seems an archaic rule that is forcing shops to be shut on one of the 2 days a week that most people are free to visit.Or would it just help supermarkets with people restocking after the weekend? (or more likely in my case, getting a pint of milk at 8am)
On a separate topic, my office is in Woking town centre, and that seems to be a town where the council have encouraged the building of office blocks in the town centre so there appears to be plenty of footfall during the week, plus lots of locals have to walk through the main square to get to/from the train station so it seems busy in the morning and evening rush hours.
Compare that to the town I live in that has the main shopping street close to the station (that has plenty of daily commuters) but isn't actually on anyone's route home so there's no passing trade.
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