Almost 200 people were at Claridge’s last month for the Estates Gazette Retail Summit.
The conference, which was sponsored by Cushman & Wakefield, gave the audience the opportunity to hear from some of the sector’s top developers, retailers, consultants and analysts.
EG editor Peter Bill chaired the half-day event, which was opened by Yvonne Court, partner at Cushman & Wakefield, with analysis of the trends and prospects for the UK retail property market.
Richard Perks, director of retail research at Mintel, looked at evolving consumer demand within the economic cycle, while Jonathan Reynolds, director at the Oxford Institute of Retail Management at Oxford University, gave tips on how to identify the future star operators.
The environmental consultant and author of the New Green Consumer Guide, Julia Hailes, warned developers and retailers of the consequence of developments and the lessons to be learned.
The developers put their own viewpoints forward in a panel chaired by EG Retail editor Noella Pio Kivlehan. The panel consisted of Peter Cleary, head of retail development at Land Securities Ken Ford, chief executive of The Mall and David Atkins, managing director of UK retail at Hammerson.
Fresh from Sainsbury’s announcement of record results, property director Peter Baguley spoke of the store’s future strategy and the intrinsic role the property portfolio has to play in the retailer’s growth plans.
The day was rounded off by customer services consultant Ros Gardner wowing the audience with her unique view on consumerism: Welcome to the Future – Sex, Chocolate & Shopping.
