'The current woes facings the retail sector, driven by the war in Ukraine, mean that empty rates are ripe for modernisation.' Robert Hayton, UK president at Altus Group, said: 'Rate-free periods need to be urgently extended to reflect the time that it actually takes to re-let vacant properties. These are sites that have been empty for three months. The real estate adviser Altus Group said that retailers and landlords would have to pay close to £1.1 billion from April 1 to cover the business rates on empty sites. This was an increase of more than 45,000 on the year before. The centre said that more than 151,000 retail jobs had been lost in the UK last year, including from online retailers. He said the trend was likely to continue this year, but added that a few 'big hitters' could also go under.
#Markly decrease driver#
The Centre for Retail Research's director, Professor Joshua Bamfield, said: 'Rather than company failure, rationalisation now seems to be the main driver for closures as retailers continue to reduce their cost base at pace.' But Joules, McColl's and TM Lewin among others still went under. They said that many of the chains that were going to fail already had in recent years.
The group's survey, released last month, found that a little over 5,500 of the shops went under, while more than 11,600 of them were closed as a larger chain decided to cut its costs.īut the researchers found there had been a 56 per cent drop in shops being closed because larger retailers – with 10 or more sites – went out of business. This was up by nearly 50 per cent on 2021, when 11,449 shops shut. The Centre for Retail Research found that 17,145 shops on high streets and other locations across the country closed in 2022. That same year, the fall of Debenhams, one of Britain's favourite department stores - which had been operational for 242 years - was also widely felt. One of the biggest blows for the high street was the collapse of Sir Philip Green's retail empire, which saw Topman, Topshop and Miss Selfridge stores practically vanish overnight in 2020. The fake shopfronts being employed in Tunbridge Wells to make empty stores appear less barren 'None of the empty shops are being replaced and if the new policy is to simply cover them up instead than it seems like it's only going to get worse.' I probably would if there was anything worth coming for but I don't because it's dead. She added: 'I only live about 15 minutes away so I could come here all the time. Now people just don't come anywhere near here anymore.' Everyone loved it and it had a great atmosphere. 'If they think they can hide that by covering the empty shops up so you can't see inside than they really don't understand how it works. The 48-year-old told MailOnline: 'The state of the town is appaling, absolutely abysmal. Kate Thomas, 48, who runs a cleaning business in nearby Wadhurst, East Sussex, said the facades put up did nothing to hide the emptiness of the town centre. Its parent company, British Land, says on its website that it has 'consent for redevelopment' and that it is 'currently finalising plans.' MailOnline has contacted the firm for comment.īut before and after photos reveal how many stores in the area have come and gone in the past few years, as they struggled to stay profitable. Royal Victoria Place was opened by Princess Diana in 1992 and was once the epicentre of a shopping mecca in the well-to-do town, however it is now filled with empty stores after seeing a sharp decline in footfall. 'We are also in ongoing conversations with a number of exciting operators about the available lease options at the centre and we're working with local charities and organisations to offer them space for use.' The local council in Tunbridge Wells said it was not behind the fake shopfront displays, as the buildings belonged to the Royal Victoria Place shopping centre.Ī spokesperson for Royal Victoria Place said: 'Over the past year, Royal Victoria Place has welcomed a range of brands as well as independent businesses.
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