So you fancy being a shopkeeper then??

[Wacky Racer]

OK,

What with all the doom and gloom, businesses closing down etc, is it a good time to open a new retail shop in the current climate??

Having been in business well over thirty years, and now approaching retirement, I was fortunate that I purchased my (fairly large town centre) retail premises for relative peanuts way back in the mid 1980's, thus have minimal expenses, however I was curious as to the kind of expenses would be incurred if I was starting from scratch, and wanted to open somewhere like the Trafford Centre in Manchester..

http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/corporate/lettings...

As you can see the figures are truly mind boggling, this is for a (relatively small) single unit, rent around £7000 per week, (not month), plus services charges, rates £2500pw.. staff costs, heat, light etc..I reckon you would need to be turning over £250,000 per month just to make a go of things.......

I accept the Trafford Centre cost well over £650 million to build, and obviously the expenses would be very high, but really, how can anyone make it pay is beyond me....

Edited by Wacky Racer on Wednesday 7th January 22:18

[sniff diesel]

And they wonder why this Country's in a mess.

[Parrot of Doom]

The thing is, there is hardly a single empty unit in that place, and it is always packed.

I loathe it. It's two miles down the road from me and causes regular traffic problems around J9 and J10 on the M60. Still, it provides a lot of local jobs.

[mattley]

[quote]The premises are available by way of a new lease contracted-out of the L&T Act for a term of 15 years on an effectively full repairing and insuring basis, incorporating 5 yearly upward only rent reviews.
[/quote]

Astonishing terms, glad you're OK, but I do fear for the proper high street.

[Carreauchompeur]

Fvck me,

10 grand a week, plus every other bill, plus staff costs... The amount you'd have to turn over is phenomenal. I used to work in a fairly niche store at the Mall in Bristol, I cannot imagine the rents/rates were wildly different. On the very best weeks at Christmas we would not clear 100k turnover... The rest of the year would be lucky to be 10-20k a week.

[RobDickinson]

I remember a store (part of a small chain) in the Trafford center when it first opened, sold afrikan stuff (cant remember the name) Soapstone sculptures, prints etc, nice shop, done decent business.

A change in something (rent rates/contract, their outgoings , no sure what) & the TC not letting them renegotiante or even get out of the contract/close that shop put the whole company under.

Then they turfed out all the small traders in the village area for whatever was put there (ice rink?).

See what happens when you offer free parking and cover from the rain..

[schueymcfee]

The Toy World one is close to £500k

[Wacky Racer]

Too expensive??

Here's a smaller one......

http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/corporate/lettings...

[Neil_H]

Part of the reason why they have high rent is to keep the standard of shops high, ie in order to be there you need to be decent enough to turn over the money to afford it. If it was full of Poundlands no one would make the effort to go there and it would die on it's arse.

[kippax]

RobDickinson said:

I remember a store (part of a small chain) in the Trafford center when it first opened, sold afrikan stuff (cant remember the name) Soapstone sculptures, prints etc, nice shop, done decent business.

A change in something (rent rates/contract, their outgoings , no sure what) & the TC not letting them renegotiante or even get out of the contract/close that shop put the whole company under.

Then they turfed out all the small traders in the village area for whatever was put there (ice rink?).

See what happens when you offer free parking and cover from the rain..

The small traders were kicked out to make way for John Lewis

H

[RobDickinson]

kippax said:

The small traders were kicked out to make way for John Lewis

H

Nah this was ages before that , they had notices up in the store appologising for closing but were forced out of business due to trafford center.

[Wings]

Carreauchompeur said:

Fvck me,

10 grand a week, plus every other bill, plus staff costs... The amount you'd have to turn over is phenomenal. I used to work in a fairly niche store at the Mall in Bristol, I cannot imagine the rents/rates were wildly different. On the very best weeks at Christmas we would not clear 100k turnover... The rest of the year would be lucky to be 10-20k a week.

I happened to read this article in the Bristol Evening Post, when one realises that with overheads of rents and rates starting from £80k per annum, with longer hours of 7 days a week trading, must be particularly daunting for an independent retailer to keep trading.

http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/Bristol-s-forg...

[Plotloss]

£40K a month plus fees just for the unit.

I'd guess monthly turnover would need to be more like £500K at the very least to make it work.

[mybrainhurts]

Holy plop....

[soxboy]

[quote=Wacky Racer]OK,

What with all the doom and gloom, businesses closing down etc, is it a good time to open a new retail shop in the current climate??

I was curious as to the kind of expenses would be incurred if I was starting from scratch, and wanted to open somewhere like the Trafford Centre in Manchester [quote]

Bit of a pointless question, though granted it's a hypothetical one. If Peel will grant a new lease to a start up business I'd be amazed, furthermore if a business thought 'I know, I'll open a shop and I'll start in the Trafford Centre', you'll a) need your bumps felt and b) shouldn't be in business.

[sleep envy]

you want to see the fines if the store isn't open during trading hours

[kippax]

RobDickinson said:

kippax said:

The small traders were kicked out to make way for John Lewis

H

Nah this was ages before that , they had notices up in the store appologising for closing but were forced out of business due to trafford center.

That's because it took 18 months to build John Lewis onto Trafford Centre & the deal was done even earlier ( traders rates werent told this) met the general manager of Trafford Centre on some crap course a while back

H

[Nolar Dog]

Third week in December it cost (the Trafford Centre) Selfridges more to open than they took.

First time ever.

[Sheriff JWPepper]

So how much are JL paying in rent?

[Carreauchompeur]

Nolar Dog said:

Third week in December it cost (the Trafford Centre) Selfridges more to open than they took.

First time ever.

Selfridges? At Christmas. That is a distinct worry!