The High Street is dying

Saturday morning saw me on a rare shopping trip to Guildford, our nearest town centre.

After an hour or so of attempting to buy the short list of things I needed, I reached the conclusion that the High Street is dying.

The shops that remain open are poorly stocked and understaffed.

Crucially, they offer nothing that justifies their premium prices relative to the Internet.

Only convenience or exceptional service would make High Street prices worth paying. You get little of either these days.

Returning to my desk this morning, one item on my news feed seems to show an improving High Street picture.

New figures from The Local Data Company show that retail vacancies are now at their lowest levels in four years.

‘Only’ 13.6% of stores were empty in December, which represents around 50,000 shop units across Britain.

This vacancy rate peaked at 14.6% in 2012, when British retailers were experiencing the biggest pinch as a result of the recession.

However, the vacancy figures also pointed towards the changing shape of the High Street, with large retail centres pulling trade and retailers away from town centres.

Town centres nearest the 12 largest shopping centres in Britain have recorded worsening occupancy rates in the last year.

The nature of retail and the High Street is undoubtedly changing.

I predict that, within the next ten years, the traditional High Street will be unrecognisable compared to today.

People will mainly shop online; it has already overtaken bricks and mortar stores for the sale of books, and the Internet will represent close to 100% of all sales of music and movies within the next three years.

It will be interesting to see what becomes of the High Street, whether it becomes a place for ‘experiences’ other than shopping, such as eating, drinking and socialising, or areas are converted for much needed residential use.

Property investment funds will need to continue to reposition away from traditional retail units and towards distribution fulfillment centres.

There will still be a place for specialist retailers, particularly in local communities, who offer something over and above the online shopping experience in order to justify their premium pricing.

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