Does all the news of store closures, Company Voluntary Arrangements (CVAs) and retail repurposing lead to the inevitable conclusion that the high street has been wiped out by new technology?

Doom and gloom is a natural, almost instinctive, human response as familiar landmarks disappear, but this is not to say that retail as we know it is over. The revolution in retail is more than the collision of old and new – it is actually an expression of outdated practices, ill-thought-out planning policies and redundant taxation rules.

The regulatory framework surrounding retail has largely stifled competition and held back innovation. Planning policies share a large part of the blame – restrictive practices that have prevented the high street from adapting and responding to change by, for example, limiting the length of non-A1 use frontage, restricting the number of cafés and restaurants in any one location, and heritage constraints that don’t allow the modification of entrances and display features.

Planning policies are not the only area of restrictive practices – rates and rental agreements have not allowed sufficient flexibility to enable retailers to respond to the dynamics of a changing market. But there has been a constant battle between retailers and planning policy makers over a perceived idea of how a town centre should look and behave. 

Out-of-town retail models have long been resisted on the basis that trade would be diverted from nearby centres – a belief that could only have been underpinned by acknowledging that people would rather shop out of town. Therein lies a message about the overall attraction of the town centre in the first place. 

The current decline of the high street is not a result of a downturn in retailing. If a town centre was relatively unattractive before the advent of internet-based shopping, it has since become only more so. The challenge now is to devise policies to revitalise town centres which may involve radically reassessing the role, function and arrangement of uses.

Indeed policy makers may also have to address how town centres in close proximity could cede ground on the part each plays in the mix. And shops in town centres might not always be well placed to allow individuals to collect goods ordered online; that aspect of the retail picture also has to be included in the assessment.

Policy makers should engage with retailers to understand their needs and how they are looking to respond to the new market forces exerted on them. Is as much display space needed and, if not, how can the surplus be used? How might traditional display areas be adapted to enable interactive use of mobile technology? What are the preferred hours of operation?

They also need to find out what experience town centre visitors want. Are cobbled streets welcomed, or are they a deterrent to people pushing prams, using walking aids or wheel-based trolleys?  With an ageing population, mobility needs have to be taken into account. Should there be more areas for rest and relaxation?

This is an exciting opportunity to reclaim the town centre as a dynamic part of the local community, a community that doesn’t just shop. The programme needs to accept from the start that the models deployed for the whole period of town planning since 1948 should now be set aside.

Further information

Contact Savills Retail Planning