The Vacant Shops Academy

What happens when a national brand targets your town or city centre for a new store or venue.

Working on tackling #highstreet vacancy, as we are now with 36 different locations, we’ve many agent connections and so regularly see and send on requirement lists, which set out the places they’d like to open in.

Typically those lists have more names than they’ll eventually expand into, which makes it competitive. Agency colleagues will correct me if I’m wrong but I’ve always said to local tackling vacancy teams that if they respond with a list of units that fit the bill plus agent or landlord details it can help their cause.

So what’s the current response if your town or city centre is on a list…?

• the ‘place partnership’ gets in touch, maybe with a council or BID team member taking the lead;
• a local agent or a national that has units in your place picks up the task;
• Nothing.

It’s another of the many reasons we believe so strongly in our ‘place partnership’ approach. It means, working together, the local team knows its empty units and has all the necessary details to share, but more than that it’s also done some work on what the town or city centre has already, what’s missing, what comparable places have and the kinds of #retail, #hospitality or other use types residents and existing businesses would welcome. In other words you know what to go for and whether you have empty units that match.

So if you’re not across the requirements process, it’s a really useful tip to take up.

Do let us know if you’re on the case…

What would you do with these 4 empty units…

…well maybe not this exact set as they’re images from a recent town centre walk-see, and there maybe things happening behind the scenes with them.

But it’s a conversation we’re having with local teams in #highstreet locations we are working about large, prominent, often multi-floor, sometimes heritage, empty buildings in their town or city centre.

First step is ‘engage’ with agents and landlords as tho visibly vacant they may have a new occupier in play or on the way (under offer).

It’s possible they’re technically let to a previous occupier who left with term in the lease and is therefore still paying rent, possibly for some time yet.

But if they are empty and available, we’d be suggesting the ‘place partnership’ – which brings together agents, landlords, businesses, community, cultural organisations, council(s), chamber, BID if they have one and others identified locally – gets the keys and takes a look inside.

That way you’ll get a sense of occupier options, barriers to let and how they can be overcome and, importantly, which of the partners needs step up to try help make that happen.

If you don’t take this approach you may find units like these stay empty because the commercial #property market gets stuck and cannot, without the wider ‘place’ involvement, move them forward.

So back to your town or city centre. Are you getting inside those large, long-time empties…?

Do let us know.

Should we pause the knocking down thing in town and city centres…?

Just to allow a moment to review, take a tackling #highstreet vacancy-focused ‘place partnership’ team inside the empty units, explore the barriers and options to occupy and, importantly, see whether together we can find a way to get them back into use…?

I get that in some cases the buildings are in too poor a way, cannot (at least cost effectively) be repurposed to current standards or are best replaced by a larger more impactful development.

But I think there’s concern that in some cases the driver isn’t that. It’s the (mistaken I’d say) belief in ‘death of…’ and the too-carelessly bandied about ‘over supply of shops’ mantra, the (supposedly) unrelenting rise of online and out-of-town shopping and the demise of well-known #retail brands.

Crucially tho, it’s also missing something: the huge potential for arts & crafts, creative, cultural, community, history & heritage, leisure, education, health and health & wellbeing uses to take on empty spaces. We’ve more and more examples like this we can share.

And that’s not just meanwhile… or for rates mitigation. These uses can stay, long term, make a contribution to the finances of a building and be positive for the place on variety, sustainability and resilience.

If we carry on as we are, is there a danger that some places will take out too much stock, bypass these opportunities and worse, leave themselves with too few units, so ending up with rising rents that drive out long-established businesses you value as part of the mix.

So if your place is planning town or city centre demolitions, are you still confident that it’s right for 2025 and the years ahead, not based on how things have gone in the last five…?

One of the reasons I’m so optimistic about the future of our town and city centres is the people…

…council colleagues, BID teams, #property agents, landlords, businesses, community leaders, cultural organisation members, shopping centre asset managers and more, working hard amongst often complex, sometimes competing challenges to make their places the best they can be.

Their expertise, creativity, determination and resilience is why I’m confident in suggesting to those taking up our tackling #highstreet vacancy approach that they can set as an objective halving the number of empty units in 18 months, even if they’re starting with a rate in the mid / high teens or over 20 per cent.

If that’s your place and you’d like to join our Academy Network and make a start on reducing those numbers and improving the mix of uses you have, getting a positive, proactive, ‘place partnership’ in play is a crucial first step.

We’d be really happy to talk you through it…

The image set is from our most recent out & about, an enjoyable, insightful stop off in Bolton town centre, much of it focusing on its historic ‘Market Place’ and how the asset, management and lettings teams there are innovating beyond the typical, traditional so it evolves with the times. It’s a real interesting and encouraging story…

It’s always interesting to return to a town you’ve not been in for a while…

…especially one that added a new #highstreet or uncovered, single street shopping centre, to its existing one.

And so, just for a walk-see, to Didcot – a town that’s seen a significant population increase with major housing development driven by its location and central rail lines positioning.

A few years back the ‘shopping centre’ added a major extension which has attracted a number of brands you often now see on out-of-town #retail parks.

Tho you can’t always tell for sure on a walk-see, both early and later sections of what’s called Orchard Centre look to be largely let.

What’s also encouraging is that the ‘original’ high street, Broadway, is too, just with a different mix: one or two national brands, some independents, food & drink uses and services.

Linking the two – and illustrating again the positive role arts & crafts, creative, culture can play – are an arts centre, theatre, gallery venue and a cinema.

It’d be great to hear from #property and #placemaking colleagues who’ve seen a sizeable modern addition alongside their traditional town centre main street…

“An innovative space for clients and non-customers, which brings a bank, co-working area and coffee house together in a single place.”

And that’s your new work cafe by a bank. Interesting.

After a full-on month which has taken us to Aberdeen, Blackburn, Blackpool, Brynmawr, Ebbw Vale, Tredegar and Crewe, time for a walk-see of my nearest city.

On what was a sunny pre-bank holiday Friday, Oxford was being its busy student, tourist, shopper, food & drink self.

Always things to learn, new businesses joining the #retail, #hospitality, services mix, noticeably (and maybe something that’s not that common everywhere) quite a few moving to try different locations, and its rolling programme of street scene changes (of which more another time).

It’s somehow at once a unique city that has much happening we see in other places. And a reminder – on a day when positive #placemaking has had to put up with another dose of media ‘ghost town’ nonsense – that what’s really happening out there is #highstreet evolving.

Or is it just me…?

Sometimes in a town or city centre a particular empty unit draws your attention.

Maybe it’s attractive, unusual, heritage even…

…and makes you wonder what its story is, why it’s empty, what options there are for its future and how the place can help it get there.

Often talking to the agent or landlord you’ll find a letting is agreed or one is close. For others it’s empty and available, potentially with use-limiting barriers to overcome.

Maybe it needs work, the ground floor is too big for current demand, it has upper floors that could be separated off for a different use. Access can be a challenge.

This is where the positive, proactive, tackling vacancy-focused ‘place partnership’ we are keen for all town and city centres where this is an issue comes in.

It brings together agents, landlords, businesses, community, cultural organisations, councils, chamber, BID where there is one plus others identified locally, to work on this, together.

Ideally they start by getting the keys and taking a look inside priority empty units in their place, think about potential use options, assess the barriers to getting them back into play, how they’re best overcome, and importantly work out which of the partners needs to step up to help make that happen.

That includes trying as a team to identify and attract businesses or organisations that add to your current mix, and match your wish list. Maybe that’s #retail, #hospitality and services or one from our longer list that starts with arts & crafts and runs through community use to education and health & wellbeing.

Do you have this approach making a difference on your #highstreet…? We know it works and can help take a significant chunk out of your vacancy rate, even if that’s currently in the mid / high teens or over 20 per cent.

It’d be great to hear…

What’s the best way to get the delivery stage of your tackling #highstreet vacancy initiative underway.

Believing so strongly in town and city centres where empty units is an issue having a positive, proactive, inclusive ‘place partnership’ on the case, it’s a question we’re often asked.

Reminded by a thoughtful recent post by our #placemaking friend Chris Wade FIPM, I thought to try answer.

The first thing would be maybe don’t start in a room, round a table. I know not everyone in this field agrees and much current practice differs, but I’d say it shouldn’t look, feel or operate like a committee.

So how then…?

Another thing I very much believe in is the value of projects. Starting people working together by doing something so it’s action-oriented (less danger of being labelled “a talking shop”) and everyone can see the objective, their role and how their skills, resources, connections etc can contribute. It always feels easier to build from there, including adding extra individuals, organisations and projects as you see the need.

Examples might be:

• setting up a community litter pick / tidy / clean up which (as Our Union Street and others are demonstrating) can include improving the look of empty units, painting utility boxes etc.;
• doing a walk-see of one of your key streets to identify things that need addressing and work out which partner(s) can best get that done;
• getting the keys (as we’ve just done for the Aberdeen Inspired-led Union Street upper floors project) and going inside an empty unit, as a team, to work out what the barriers are to getting it back into use, who future occupiers might be, what’s required to sort the issues and who needs step up.

It’d be great to hear your thoughts and if this works for you as an approach…

So I sat for two hours in a vacant town centre shop…

…and had a great time…!

Good thing is, I was not alone. The best thing is I was really lucky to have been there as part of the audience for a Crewe staging of the brilliant Mick Martin play Keep On Keepin’ On. Not only is it set in a #highstreet shop but has the challenges facing indie #retail owners and town centres in general as a running theme, not least in the inspirational ending (which I’ll not say more about so I don’t take the edge off for anyone who’s still to see it).

Seriously if you’re in or around Blackburn or Blackpool in the next two weeks I’d check out Northern Soul Productions and book to go.

For me, with a tackling vacancy focus and believing so strongly in the (much bigger) positive role arts & crafts, creative, culture can play in that, being involved in this project has been a joy and a real learning experience. That’s partly because the team have put so much effort into building a connecting programme around it including for this first week…

• a business support workshop;
• a live vinyl DJ-led northern soul set at the town’s Market Hall and
• a creative careers and connections event hosted by the local theatre.

Do take a look and if you think the play would be a fit with efforts you’re making to increase the impact of arts & crafts, creative, culture in your town or city centre, do please shout…!