Author Archives: Iain Nicholson

Your town or city centre’s headline vacancy rate is almost exactly the national average – that’s quoted as 13.5%. So what could you realistically set as a target looking ahead…? It’s a very practical question I’ve been asked this week … Continue reading →

It’s a large, prominent but now long-empty unit in your town centre, and it’s starting show the signs of that too. Paint peeling, partly boarded up, greenery sprouting around the windows. Got one like that or more…? So what are … Continue reading →

“Across the country, 13.5% of shops stand empty, the lowest vacancy rate since 2020, with a further drop expected next year.” That’s a line from one press story this week. Now I get that a single positive national media article … Continue reading →

Four years ago this week since I closed the laptop on my time as Oxford City Centre Manager (on Christmas Eve to make it tidy and easy for even me to remember)… …and launched The Vacant Shops Academy. Feel privileged … Continue reading →

This is what happens if you put 100-plus ‘Positives’ in a room for two and a half hours… …even if it’s a virtual one. And so my reflections on an inspiring, insightful first HighStreetPositives summit, albeit a little later than … Continue reading →

Shops moving from one to another building in your town or city centre is always an interesting and important part of the story. It can be for a range of reasons and I would love to hear examples from #property … Continue reading →

This is why I’m so optimistic about the future for our town and city centres. The new openings in our image set, different types in varying towns, but sharing a story of investment, hard work and imagination to get the … Continue reading →

A very welcome new shop, a popular eatery, maybe something creative or community… What’s making the news on your town or city centre social media channels…? It could be a #retail or #hospitality business opening, brand or indie – and … Continue reading →