Future british high streets

dmclite-3.0

With the Internet the way it has gone, what type of shops do you think will be left ? I only want to pick your brains after a programme on R4, which was saying about the demise of some retailers which were predominantly high street and the rise of online retailers.
Also what do you think the repercussions may be for us all ?

ooermissus

Restaurants, bars, shops that sell an experience rather than just a product.

danlikesbikes

Well it was years ago believed that the out of town developments would kill off the high street & TBH it did little by little. With many high streets now making a come back though as many of the larger companies having over stretched themselves & falling victim to the financial crisis.

High street shops now find themselves in the same position with online retailers but I don't think if will change, well hopefully not. As less shops, higher unemployment & less economic growth.

I do like the american system of being proud of products "made in the USA". We used to do this ourselves in engineering terms 100 years ago and were rightly proud, but this seems to have died down to some extent.

Frank the tank

One way or another it looks bleak for the high street and it's a sh1tter IMHO.

On line retail is the big hitter + out of town shopping + supermarkets + shopping malls.

All very well buying on line what happens when your puchase goes wrong or needs servicing ? If we're talking bikes (being as we're on a cycling forum) where do you take it Wiggle* won't want to know, and there's no decent LBS 'cos they went out of business 'cos Wiggle* we're cheaper.

The high street needs to be saved but it's a case of how.

* Other on line suppliers are available.

goonz

Food, hair dressers, pharmacies.

was having a similar convo just yesterday, all those small independent toy stores have all totally finished and closed up shop. Sad really.

Frank the tank

I think about the only place where the HS has any chance of survival is in towns that are some kind of tourist destination.

dmclite-3.0

I go to Whitstable regularly, which is a very busy l;ittle town, and like FTT says, a bit touristy so this helps enormously.

I reckon any experience shop you want will still be there, like coffee shops, nail and beauty, chemists maybe. The local councils do nothing to help by charging loads for car parking.

finchy

The future is being served by people who don't have a clue what they're doing or selling.

Yellow Peril

If you aren't a particularly charitable person or don't like coffee then there is little reason for going on too the High Street.

The IOM is a little more high street dependent than other towns or cities but even so it is starting to creak a little. I have a policy of trying to support local trade where at all possible especially my LBS. Yes I could make a saving by shopping around online but what about the banter? and what would I do if it wasn't there and I needed something urgently?

Lagrange

Is it possible that, in a forum which is effectively unlimited as to content and which has contributors of wit and intellect that this - the most boring, tedious, dull and uninviting can exist. A boring high street post - not even substantial in content.

ooermissus

Lagrange wrote:

Is it possible that, in a forum which is effectively unlimited as to content and which has contributors of wit and intellect that this - the most boring, tedious, dull and uninviting can exist. A boring high street post - not even substantial in content.

We do our best to please. 8)

dmclite-3.0

Lagrange wrote:

Is it possible that, in a forum which is effectively unlimited as to content and which has contributors of wit and intellect that this - the most boring, tedious, dull and uninviting can exist. A boring high street post - not even substantial in content.

Job done, from one extreme to another with me,

nickyboy zz

Fast forward 20 years.....what will the High Street look like?

Well, for sure the shops selling goods and services that can't be bought online (like restaurants, hairdressers, dry cleaning, shoe repairs, probably butchers & fishmongers) will still be there. The shops selling high end stuff like shoes, clothes, jewellery, accessories will still be there because people will want the "service" and want to touch and feel something expensive before they buy it
Convenience stores will still be there because they serve impulse buying.
Of course, as High Street footfall reduces, the imperative for these shops to still be located on the High Street reduces

But apart from that, they will be gone.

So what happens to all the space? I think it gets converted into housing (just like village pubs do). That leaves a much smaller, less interesting High Street. Experience has shown that whilst people like High Streets, when push comes to shove they are selfish and vote with their wallets for (initially) out of town shopping and (latterly) online shopping

edhornby

not an easy solution but the tax system in the UK needs a complete overhaul so that small businesses can compete with big corporations that offset tax across the eurozone, and the ridiculous level of business rents need to come down

but consumers need to support local businesses over going to the likes of bluewater/asda/wiggle/amazon

ooermissus

nickyboy zz wrote:

So what happens to all the space? I think it gets converted into housing (just like village pubs do). That leaves a much smaller, less interesting High Street.

Quite the reverse. More people living in town centres is probably the thing most likely to bring them back to life.

nickyboy zz

ooermissus wrote:

nickyboy zz wrote:

So what happens to all the space? I think it gets converted into housing (just like village pubs do). That leaves a much smaller, less interesting High Street.

Quite the reverse. More people living in town centres is probably the thing most likely to bring them back to life.

You might be right but I think the numbers won't stack up. There will, I think, be a bigger fall off in numbers attracted into the High Street than the increase in numbers living there in what were previously shops. The irony may be that those people attracted to town centre living are those most likely to shop online ie. urban professionals. So plenty of shops servicing their demand for coffee, eating out, haircuts, dry cleaning etc. But not for the traditional High Street stores

nickyboy zz

edhornby wrote:

not an easy solution but the tax system in the UK needs a complete overhaul so that small businesses can compete with big corporations that offset tax across the eurozone, and the ridiculous level of business rents need to come down

but consumers need to support local businesses over going to the likes of bluewater/asda/wiggle/amazon

You raise a number of interesting points. High Street business rents will come down, it is an inevitable consequence of less demand for High Street retail space.
I agree that if consumers decided tomorrow to stop shopping online, stop going to out-of-town shopping centres and instead went to the High Street that would 100% save the High Street. But it's not going to happen. The "traditional" High Street stores have had their time. They must adapt to survive, if they keep doing what they are doing now then they will go out of business.
Not sure about your point on tax. Small Company corporation tax is already a lower rate than Large company corporation tax. There is no right of offset tax liability across different eurozone countries

slowmart

Convenience stores owned by larger chains.

Betting shops owned by large chains

Knocking shops owned by large chains



The future of the high street is in the consumers hands. If we choose to use the local butcher, baker or whoever then that business will be sustainable. I live just outside a small market town on Shropshire. It has no local baker except for chains and one remaining butcher.

tlw1

Slowmart wrote:

Convenience stores owned by larger chains.

Betting shops owned by large chains

Knocking shops owned by large chains



The future of the high street is in the consumers hands. If we choose to use the local butcher, baker or whoever then that business will be sustainable. I live just outside a small market town on Shropshire. It has no local baker except for chains and one remaining butcher.

sounds like Market Drayton - but to be fair could be anywhere.

VTech

As has been said above, it's in our hands but in reality, with prices quashed due to lower disposable incomes there really is only one way for this. I live in a quiet area of the country and only a few miles from several villages and all have dwindling shops, higher business rates, higher rents for shops, people buying less outside of the supermarket realm really means doom for small shop keepers.
There is no incentive for them to remain, would you put yourself into an early grave, waking up at the crack of dawn and then going home when the sun has been gone for several hours on a daily basis for the rest of your life ?
Can you imagine the hours of a small business shop keeper ?

Local councils don't seem to be doing enough for local shops and centres, almost bowing down to the supermarkets in a way which is a joke, they just look at the books for a government term rather than for a sustainable future. Bromsgrove town centre is only a few miles from me as used to be a wonderful place, friendly shops bustling with customers and now it's a ghost town.
In their wisdom the local council decided to change the 4 hour Parking to 1 hour and within 3 months both hairdressers had closed down, one of them had been open in the town for 26 years but due to having no parking couldn't keep the customers as ladies often need more than an hour for a hair cut and they left for other shops in local Redditch as Rubery town centre.

It's all madness, often the main picture is missed as they simply don't talk to the locals or worse still dont listen.

In the end we will be so reliant on supermarkets that they will be like they are in the USA and rule over government like the banks do.

Google Walmart and see how they have for round the pension and sick pay situations it will make you think I can assure you.

mallorcajeff

I think v tech sums it up there. As for the parking changing thats just pathetic. What harm does it do to park a car for three hours?
Its very bad here in spain. Due to the economics though, online retailing in spain is marginal. Having said that it all comes down to price. I have spent somewhere between 3-5k with wiggle,crc, and others over the past couple of years on bits and pieces, and have spent less than 500euros here in the shops as its just so expensive. Yes i would miss the shop when its not there but i dont feel the need to pay 450 euros for something i can get delivered for say 300. I cant say to my boss can i have an extra 150 quid for something so i buy where its best value. Yes online has a much bigger advantage on the costs front. I would not want to own a shop on any high street right now. It seems if you sell coffee, or do nails your good to go, anything else forget it. When i lived in the uk i lived in a large village/small town. When i was a kid you could live and shop without leaving the town. When i was back a few weeks ago i was stunned at the high road. It is about a mile and a half long and is 80% houses. Made up of one petrol station, one spar type shop, 3 pubs, and ready for this
8 chinese takeaway
4 Indians
3 kebab shops
2 pizza shops
6 nail beauty shops
4 estate agents
And im not joking i even drove the road twice to check i was right 11 hairdressers!

I remember as a kid the two great bike shops we had. One is now a hairdresser and one was demolished and a nail shop is where it was.

team47b

I remember when it was all fields round here

smoggysteve

I'm going to revolutionize the high street!! Ready for this....

99p shop. Have that Poundland!!!!

FergySteve

Errr.... That one's been done... May I suggest a 98p shop?

Cleat Eastwood

there also used to be a 50p shop. I bought CB some rare old treats in there - the spud gun, pink highlighter pens, and a blow up mallet - best valentines day I ever had,

smoggysteve

FergySteve wrote:

Errr.... That one's been done... May I suggest a 98p shop?

IDEA THIEF!!!!!!

dmclite-3.0

In TPM and Kaizen theory its "stealing with pride".

BelgianBeerGeek

Every shop premises large enough will be a Wetherspoons. Smaller ones, charity shops. In between, coffee shops like Costa etc.

morstar

As a working example, a bike shop will need to be a service centre first and foremost in an urban area and maybe a destination cafe in a more rural area. There will absolutely be less of them but there will be room for innovative ones.
I shop in supermarkets so can't be too hypocritical but...
Drives me potty to hear councillors going on about job creation when granting planning for yet another supermarket. How does yet more job consolidation and the loss of local retailers equate to additional jobs? Short term perspective on an inconceivable scale.
What's the answer? I don't know personally but I do know that a small town like Chorley needs to focus on being a town of independent retailers and a vibrant market town rather than a poor attempt at a major town. There is a ridiculous amount of major brand retail space within 30 mins so there is no point trying to go head to head. Towns and retailers alike need to diversify or just take what's coming.

mididoctors

amazon collection stores?

mingmong

All of the above. But, I think shoe shops will survive.