The End of the High Street?

[Cricko]

With the imminent collapse of TJ Hughes following in the footsteps of Habitat, Jane Norman, the Moben kitchens group, which also encompasses Dolphin bathrooms and Sharpes bedrooms in the past 7 days and with HMV just about on the verge of collapse with their current fire sale, is the high street finally dying?

I rarely go in Southend these days but on my last visit in seemed to just contain phone shops, coffee bars and banks....I have said for sometime that on line shopping would be the death of retail shops for the obvious savings they can offer with lower overheads...Even boot sales these days have become mini markets and are growing at a rapid rate. The ease with which you can choose from a vast range of goods and have them delivered to your door at cheaper prices can only mean worse it yet to come for those shops that still exist.Out of town shopping areas like Lakeside for example will IMO be the only future for any retail shops that want to take the risk that continued customers will fall their way.

I just cannot see a resurge in the High Street ever happening and we will be left with a few shops surrounded by Tescos.It is just another area that those who are not particularly skilled will no longer be able to find work.

Thoughts?

 

[Hotman]

To an extent, yes. I think that High Streets will remain, but with different purposes for different demographics. With all respect to an area like Southend, with no real attraction to the shopping centre, I believe it will become more about coffee bars restaurants etc, and other things unavailable online (hair / beauty / gyms etc).There will need to be a rebalancing of rents and rates between out of town units and town centre units. But there will always be a place for top end shops - for example I wouldn't buy a pair of church's shoes online, but would be happy to buy rockports or similar. Problem is, there are not enough luxury shoppers for every town.

 

[Cricko]

You just described Leigh-on-sea.

 

[MK Shrimper]

What's different? We've just tried to live the American dream in the UK - huge soulless malls in the middle of nowhere where you need a car to get to. I avoid shopping at all costs, apart from the weekly jaunt to Tesco's (that fortunately I can walk to).

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

What's different? We've just tried to live the American dream in the UK - huge soulless malls in the middle of nowhere where you need a car to get to. I avoid shopping at all costs, apart from the weekly jaunt to Tesco's (that fortunately I can walk to).

This is something that's struck me ever since I went on a three month trip to the USA in the early 70's.It was obvious that's what the (later) UK model was all about.One country that has done rather better in this respect is France.Almost certainly because they have more space outside their major towns than the UK, since that's where most of the out of town shopping malls, budget hotels,big retail outlets get built.Leaving the centre for old style shops where service is important,cafes etc.

 

[OldBlueLady]

The death knell sounded for Southend High Street some time ago, and was compounded by the appearance of numerous bargain bucket shops (99p shops and their like). I always used to complain that the High Street was full of shoe shops and building societies when I worked down there, it isn't anymore. Aren't TJ Hughes the ones that just took over Woolies' old premises? This is definitely a time for the town planners to see what they want to attract to Southend, and something along the lines of Leigh would not only work but be a positive attraction IF it can be made to happen. It's all very well having made all the recent investment on the aesthetics of the upper end of the High Street and area by Vic Circus, but it's absolutely pointless unless something is done not only with the High Street but also with Vic Avenue.

 

[Cricko]

TJ Hughes are the ones that took over Wollies...I hate what they have done to Vic Circus, it is a nightmare now for traffic and I avoid it like the plaque.I cannot ever see Southend High Street being like Leigh, there are far to many Chavs and the like that hang about there and what with the upsurge with street crime the more affluent will just not go there at all.

 

[Jedi Shrimper]

I don't think it's the death knell of the High Street full stop, just the high street as we know it. I think it's the large chains like HMV, Moben, TJ Hughes, Woolworths etc that will disappear, their main selling point was cheapness as they could buy in bulk but now that's what the internet can do even better. There could be a resurgance in independant shops as they can offer things that the internet cannot like quality of service, knowledge, people want to buy local produce and support local businesses (a connection the chains simply don't have) but they need to learn how to effectively market themselves in the modern age.

 

[Smiffy]

I want to take over the former Yates/La Tasca premises...

But was quoted £125,000 per annum rental, plus another £50,000 in rates etc.

There is the problem.

 

[MK Shrimper]

I want to take over the former Yates/La Tasca premises...

But was quoted £125,000 per annum rental, plus another £50,000 in rates etc.

There is the problem.

For the ShrimperZone shop? My god it may just work.... (it won't).

 

[Rudi Luftwaffe]

I miss those Smokers Paradise style shops.

 

[Crabby Shrimper]

For the ShrimperZone shop? My god it may just work.... (it won't).

Nah, that's being opened outside Upton Park tube station (yep, still sore about the West Ham shop in Southend all those years back).

As for the high streets, there are still a few around that restrict pound shops/chain stores and the like. Cromer and Sheringham both have a few known brand stores (mainly pharmacists) and then it's mainly independant stores, though they have the advantage of being tourist towns in the summer. Louth, in Lincs is, I believe another one where they've restricted the stores they allow in the high street.

Unfortunately it requires town planners to look at long term gain rather than short term greed, and that often seems unlikely.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Shops like M&S, Boots and Next still seem to be doing well though. It's harder to tell with places like Debenhams and BHS. What was a mistake was allowing the middle of the High Street to practically disappear, there's next to nothing between River Island and Marks other than phone shops and food shops.

 

[pickledseal]

Thornton's today announced the closure of 120 shops too...

 

[Beefy]

The problem is that the 'High Street' as a concept is a 19th Century business model which simply doesn't work any more in the 21st Century where we have e-commerce and a small number of massive supermarkets constantly branching out and selling more and more different types of product. In order to compete with the supermarkets and the internet, High Street shops, both independent and large chains, squeezed their margins as tight as possible then when demand dropped in the credit crunch they stopped generating enough cash to cover their obligations.

Shops can still exist in a High Street in the British economy but they need to actually offer something, in terms of selling a range of goods exclusive to them or a broader range of products than the supermarkets can match.

HMV are a decent example. I find prices at online stores such as Play.com and Amazon have axctually icnreased in recent times and I think HMV can compete. Plus it's always busy whenever I go into any of their stores. But they need to concentrate their business on providing a range of products which Tesco and Sainsburys can't match. HMV's biggest problem has been Waterstones which they've now got rid of. But, like a lot of companies, they expanded excessively in the boom years, they borrowed too much money and now they're struggling to pay their debts.

 

[OldBlueLady]

HMV's biggest problem has been Waterstones which they've now got rid of.

Have they? What happens where stores were amalgamated then, Basildon for instance, which closed a thriving Waterstones and put it at the back of HMV.

 

[Beefy]

I don't know. I'm pretty sure the Russian guy who owned a stake in Waterstones bought out most of HMV's stock in it a month or two back.

EDIT - yeah, sold for £53m last month.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13466179

 

[Cricko]

I just popped into Hadleigh and I am please to see that not only are they extending Morrisons to about treble the size to fight for food sales with Lidl and Iceland but now the people of Hadleigh, who were struggling to find somewhere to buy their food will now have the added bonus of Costcutter who I notice are taking over the old Woolies store.

:nope:

 

[osymandus]

I don't think it's the death knell of the High Street full stop, just the high street as we know it. I think it's the large chains like HMV, Moben, TJ Hughes, Woolworths etc that will disappear, their main selling point was cheapness as they could buy in bulk but now that's what the internet can do even better. There could be a resurgance in independant shops as they can offer things that the internet cannot like quality of service, knowledge, people want to buy local produce and support local businesses (a connection the chains simply don't have) but they need to learn how to effectively market themselves in the modern age.

I agree with Drastic and the fact that Southend is becoming a Student town , shops may become sepcalised in the way that say Brighton is , little independent outlets ??

 

[MK Shrimper]

I agree with Drastic and the fact that Southend is becoming a Student town , shops may become specalised in the way that say Brighton is , little independent outlets ??

A gay mecca? TB get out those leather chaps...