Boarded-Up Britain: One In Eight Shops Shut, worst in t'North

A._Badger

While the Internet has been a death blow to many small shops, local councils have been conspiring to strangle them for years, too.

Ecoloon-inspired draconian controls over parking and car access to town centres, dirty little backhand deals with supermarket and other retail chains to develop vampiric 'retail parks' (which suck business and life out of town centres) all nicely conspire with increasing government and EU nonsense (WEEE regulations, anyone?) that must make operating a small shop about as enticing as opening a pork pie stall in Islamabad.

And this is far from being solely a Northern/Midlands problem. I can think of one South Coast town - the once prosperous little Hythe, in Kent - which looks like it is caving in on itself as shop after shop closes.

And the response of towering intellects at Folkestone 'Shepway' council? They're just about to make parking there even harder!

PasturesNew

treliac wrote: »

I've just been to look at carpet shops and discovered that 2 or the 3 in the nearest decent sized town have closed down. Leaving just one means there is reduced choice and no competition, which doesn't feel good.

Carpet shops started to die when laminate flooring became all the thing. Hardwood and laminate, hard flooring - people didn't want carpets any more.

Final nail in the coffin was the downturn in building and the housing market as most carpet sales are for new places, or people moving and feeling a bit flush.

ash28

daveyjp wrote: »

"Well if the rents are lowered by landlords of some of the boarded up shops, to attract in new businesses or start-ups.. there might be good competition and more potential for profit"


Why should it be the landlord who drops the price of their product to below what it costs them to provide it?

We lost 4 shops in our small shopping centre a couple of years ago and the reasons the shop keepers gave were rent increases. We had a Panasonic shop a small private business with 2 shops, a butcher, independent with 2 shops and a greengrocer, independent with 1 shop, a bookshop, independent with 1 shop. Their rents increased from £18k a year to £42k a year - too expensive for all of them. The shops were well used, the bookshop was quite expensive - but very handy.

The greengrocer and butcher were next to each other and have been replaced by a double unit Clinton's cards. The bookshop has been replaced by a Card Factory (we already had and still have a very nice independent card shop) and the Panasonic shop has been replaced by a national travel agent.

It is a shame, but that's life I suppose - I would rather our independent shops were still there but hey ho.

treliac

PasturesNew wrote: »

Carpet shops started to die when laminate flooring became all the thing. Hardwood and laminate, hard flooring - people didn't want carpets any more.

Final nail in the coffin was the downturn in building and the housing market as most carpet sales are for new places, or people moving and feeling a bit flush.

Thanks PN. Laminate flooring can look horrible after a time. The edges can wear and start to peel back! There are some very good and substantial vinyls on the market now and I like the look of things like Karndean.

However, for a sitting room, stairs and bedroom areas, I don't think anything beats a good twist carpet for comfort and appearance. The carpet is for DD's bedroom. She hummed and hawed and finally decided that's what she would like for her re-ramp.

bendix

Gorgeous_George wrote: »

We can all complain about empty shops but the fact is that shoppers prefer supermarkets and t'Interweb. Business rates kill shops - and pubs.



GG

Precisely. People are such hypocrites.

Everybody says they want small shops in their towns and villages in some quasi-idyllic notion that they want to live in a Miss Marple-type world with a friendly butcher and a baker who makes his own jam tarts every morning, yet they only want them for charm factor.

Because we all know that those same people will drive straight past those shops to get to the supermarkets and shopping malls.

And why not? It's freedom of choice - exactly what we have all been clamouring for.

It's not the business rates that have killed small shopkeepers. It's the consumer, it's the growth of cars and the working/middle classes becoming more mobile, and - of course - the internet too in some markets.

dopester

I knew my own local area was bad, just aside from Wilmslow I mentioned before... but it is top of the league according to The Stun.

Altrincham: Ghost town UK




BRITAIN'S bleakest "ghost town" is today revealed as the once bustling shopping centre of Altrincham.

More than 30 PER CENT of the stores stand empty and boarded up in previously packed streets that are now a forest of To Let and For Sale signs.

Historic Altrincham - eight miles from the throbbing city centre of Manchester and once considered "posh" - now has the highest rate of vacant retail units in the country.

"Rental values have plunged. We pay £25,000 a year plus another £12,000 in business rates. But I've heard some landlords are giving six months' free rent just to get people in. If the places are empty they are stuck with the rates.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3130945/Altrincham-identified-as-having-the-worst-store-vacancy-rates-in-Britain.html

This is partially why I'm not even confident of buying in areas that I was formerly keen on. Not quite sure just how bad things are going to get, and if I'd want to even remain in the area... where as renting gives you options for quicker decisions.

treliac

treliac wrote: »

I've just been to look at carpet shops and discovered that 2 or the 3 in the nearest decent sized town have closed down. Leaving just one means there is reduced choice and no competition, which doesn't feel good.

It's almost sorted now. We've decided on the range, just got to finalise the colour, and it's coming from our own high street independent. So good news for us and for our local trader. :T

A._Badger

dopester wrote: »

I knew my own local area was bad, just aside from Wilmslow I mentioned before... but it is top of the league according to The Stun.

So much for high rents being the problem!

And just look at those big, fat yellow lines and the wide, empty, pavements. I wonder how much it costs to park in the town's car parks?

I had to visit Brighton recently by car (usually I go by train). I had no idea just how car unfriendly the ecoloons have made that town - parking charges are close to those of central London and the traffic controls are so bad that you can't help wondering if the the hippies' next move is to plant landmines in the road.

As long as local councils are allowed to make town centres inhospitable and uninviting, this will continue.

Time was when town councils were run by local businessmen and traditional, industrial, Labour supporters. The staff did what they were told. Today, the staff are far too often influential in policy matters (particularly of the watermelon variety thanks to ecoloon entryism) and the councillors are overpaid, clueless, publicity seekers.

fc123

bendix wrote: »

Precisely. People are such hypocrites.

Everybody says they want small shops in their towns and villages in some quasi-idyllic notion that they want to live in a Miss Marple-type world with a friendly butcher and a baker who makes his own jam tarts every morning, yet they only want them for charm factor.

Because we all know that those same people will drive straight past those shops to get to the supermarkets and shopping malls.

And why not? It's freedom of choice - exactly what we have all been clamouring for.

It's not the business rates that have killed small shopkeepers. It's the consumer, it's the growth of cars and the working/middle classes becoming more mobile, and - of course - the internet too in some markets.

I would say it is a combination of all the things mentioned and we are just going through a period of change in the way consumers purchase things they need.

Business rates are a far higher cut of a stores fixed costs than they were 2 decades ago. Business rates relief for small business' doesn't seem to have kept up with rising rates valuations either.

Our first shop (opened in 1990) let @ £23,500pa and the rates were about £2,300pa......mid 90's they jumped to 6k I think.

Our last shop had rent of £32,500 and rates of £16,000.

Unfortunately I can't really write too much about how the big chains (in clothing) run their empires (as I have gone from being an indie shop owner for 2 decades to trading within one....though we are still an independent set up) and I always knew how it worked....but now I can see and feel it.
It makes me quite sad but it's where the ££££ is.

Its all very Tescopoly....who, by the way, are expanding their internet selling and are trying to move into fashion in a big way. They have just signed up a company to create a label to rival Lipsy for example.

A Badger mentions Brighton and the churn on indies was about 40% I think.....many just bumbled along for 2 or 3 years before closing with losses and someone else came along to give it a go.....and so the cycle continued.

fc123

dopester wrote: »

I knew my own local area was bad, just aside from Wilmslow I mentioned before... but it is top of the league according to The Stun.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3130945/Altrincham-identified-as-having-the-worst-store-vacancy-rates-in-Britain.html

This is partially why I'm not even confident of buying in areas that I was formerly keen on. Not quite sure just how bad things are going to get, and if I'd want to even remain in the area... where as renting gives you options for quicker decisions.

Up north? We tried some concessions up your way and closed one already.....hoping to get out of another as soon as politically possible...it's too tricky to write about

I sell far more in Miami for some reason.