Author Archives: Iain Nicholson

Really liked that our first briefing note of the new year was setting out for a local school suggestions of the very many ways they can play a significant and impactful part in a tackling #highstreet vacancy project for their … Continue reading →

Wandering our nearest town centre and wondering: if it ran a survey of residents and businesses to ask what they’d like to see take on its empty #highstreet unit opportunities, what answers we’d get. What would be the response if … Continue reading →

We talk a lot on here about empty units, and what might take those spaces, about town and city centres, policy and projects, awesome heritage buildings, #streetart and installations… …and maybe not enough about the most important part of all … Continue reading →

Kind of neat to find myself in this city as we approach another tackling #highstreet vacancy milestone… It was 24/12 three years ago next week that I shut the lap top on my Oxford City Centre Manager role and started … Continue reading →

“It does need more shops, so that there’s more to choose from.” This from one of the people interviewed by a TV crew as part of a piece about the #highstreet… …and it struck me how often you hear that … Continue reading →

That long-stuck 14% national vacancy rate must surely start to come down now. I say that based on two things: + Feedback from locations we’re working on tackling #highstreet vacancy with #TheVacantShopsAcademy, who are seeing their headline empty ‘shops’ rates … Continue reading →

I always enjoy my visits here. Heritage buildings and ventures, frequent reminders of its history, a variety of brands, long established indies, new arrivals, #retail, #hospitality, services, arts & crafts, creative, culture playing their part, waterways with a new leisure … Continue reading →

Let’s be really ambitious about the role schools and colleges can play in helping tackle vacancy in our town and city centres. We should maybe agree at the outset that it’s challenging: limitations on staff time plus curriculum and exam … Continue reading →

Retail is very much still part of the #highstreet mix.  Shops are typically top of or at least prominent on any list of what residents say they want from their town or city centre when asked.  A number of brands … Continue reading →