Birmingham’s retail offering ‘patchy’ but restaurant scene is best outside London claims new study

BIRMINGHAM’S retail mix could be better although the city is capable of supplying one of the best culinary experiences outside London, a new study of shopping trends has concluded.

The study, The State of the UK’s Retail Places, has been compiled by the Local Data Company and the Oxford Institute of Retail Management.

In presenting its findings, the LDC said: “For the UK’s High Streets to thrive in the future is not just about being big enough to withstand the ‘perfect storm’ that comes from a mix of austerity, online and out-of-town retailing. Whilst many big retail centres continue to be resilient, the most successful smaller town centres will need to be diverse and versatile, perhaps developing specialist roles.”

The study’s Retail Diversity Index measures what it calls the variety of Comparison Goods outlets and using it, determines which are the UK’s more interesting places to shop.

It rates Bath, York, Exeter and Cheltenham highly, as well as smaller centres such as Salisbury, Leamington Spa and Chichester.

However, it said other centres lacked variety, and despite their size – some larger cities such as Birmingham, Cardiff, Southampton and Sheffield, together with places like Cambridge, Oxford and Windsor, had “patchier coverage” of some types of retail business when compared with similarly-sized centres.

However, changes to the Mailbox and the fact Birmingham will soon become the only city outside London to have a Harvey Nicholls, Selfridges and a John Lewis must call this into question.

The study also claims that many High Streets are more than just places for shopping. It said a leisure services diversity index meant certain towns scored more highly than other places of a similar size.

Bournemouth, Stratford-upon-Avon, Blackpool and Weston-super-Mare all rated highly for this.

However, while Birmingham’s retail offering disappointed, its restaurant scene fared much better.

Using a Restaurant Diversity Index, Camden Town, Ealing, Clapham, Putney and Richmond were all said to provide greater than expected choice.

“But outside London, you should also be spoiled for choice in Manchester, Birmingham or Reading – as well as in either Oxford or Cambridge,” it said.

Changing retail habits over the past 30 years have led to many towns seeing their rating improve because of changes made to their shopping centres,  

Solihull and Leamington Spa are cited as two prime examples of this trend, along with Derby, Milton Keynes and Norwich.

The past three decades have also seen the emergence of new shopping destinations; a trend driven primarily by the creation of new out-of-town retail centres such as Merry Hill.

Some of those to have fared worst over the past 30 years are Sheffield,  Swansea, Coventry and Middlesborough whose declining economies have seen the town centres slip out of the top 50 in the UK.

Matthew Hopkinson, LDC director, said: “This research has developed some fascinating insights into the importance of occupation trends when all too often it is vacancy rates that drive the headlines. Recent political interest in how one can influence the occupational changes that we have shown is a new aspect of High Street politics.”

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