The closure of over 5,000 stores last year will certainly be distressing news for retailers and for the economy in general. Especially since the news comes alongside ONS figures reporting a 0.4% drop in retail sales volumes in December and January. However, neither is unexpected given the recent highs in unemployment and the weakness of consumer sentiment in the economy. Encouraging more 'retailer friendly' conditions as the BRC suggest may certainly ease the pain for retailers a little, but the issue of mass closures is structural as well as cyclical. The explosive growth of online retail, the diversification of large retailers into non food and intensifying price competition have all squeezed the high street hard. Peripheral measures such as 'free parking ' in town centres as suggested by the Portas review may help in some cases but it seems unlikely that any action could restore the high street to its former glory as consumer habits evolve.
Friday, 17 February 2012
