COMMENT: Do you remember me assembling a cross-disciplinary team to write a review into our town centres, entitled An Alternative Future for the High Street five years ago, asks Bill Grimsey, chair, Grimsey Review, former chief executive Wickes and Iceland.
That report was very well-received. Its main thesis was that our town centres are precious places: places of economic development, community service and social discourse. And that their future should not be predicated solely on retail activity. And I spoke as a retailer, man and boy.
In light of the total carnage we have witnessed in retail since January 2018, this seems like a pretty prescient finding; if anything, perhaps rather too mildly expressed.
EG readers are familiar with the epidemic of big-name CVAs now under way (how the mighty are fallen!), the recent shifts and sorry sagas surrounding the ownership of some of our shopping centres, all topped off with the merger of Sainsbury’s with Asda.
Add to that the nearly 1,500 independent retailers across Britain that were forced to shut their doors for good in the past 12 months due to soaring business rates, rising costs and a fall in trade, and you have a recipe for meltdown in our high streets.
Anxiety levels are running high. Not a day goes by when there isn’t a big splash in one of our national newspapers. And the issue of our failing high streets loomed large over last week’s local elections, as something of a metaphor for broken Britain.
So I am either a brave man or a total fool (you decide) to have got the band back together again.
My team is revisiting the review five years on to assess what we got right and, probably more importantly, what we got wrong in our first report.
We are producing a second report (currently snappily known as Grimsey 2) to be launched at the Local Government Association conference in Birmingham on July 4 – we believe that it is local government which is best-placed to be the custodians of place – although they cannot do it without the support of you landowners and investors.
We announced our intention to embark on Grimsey 2 in during MIPIM in March and, subsequently, we have been inundated with suggestions, ideas and offers of help from across the property industry, with the BPF and Revo to the fore.
I’ve been in retail for more than 50 years. I’ve seen many things come and go but nothing compares with the scorched earth we are now witnessing.
EG retail analyst James Child is energetically supporting the research, and we are attempting to be as inclusive as possible.
So what have we learnt? Well there are some valiant British town centres that have scored a measure of success by picking up some of our recommendations and we will be featuring a number of these as case studies.
But there is only one town that has implemented every single part of our first review – and it isn’t even in the UK.
Roeselare, Belgium, is a city in the heart of Flanders suffering from very similar problems to towns of the same size here. Its mayor and staff took our review and implemented it in almost every dot and comma.
So Roeselare is a great test case for us. And it seemed only reasonable to go and have a look to see if our prescription works, and to include the brilliant lead officer from the Roeselare team in the production of Grimsey 2.
Some of our gang bundled out there on the Eurostar recently to have a look around, together with an ITN film crew in tow (as you do).
During two days of filming there were some comical moments but, in the main, what we saw was deeply serious. And it blew us away.
Roeselare is an engaged and an engaging place. It boasts the two things that we believe are essential for the future success of any town centre: strong civic leadership and a proper plan.
Since implementing the changes based on our review in its coherent city plan, Roeselare has had 125,000 extra visits a year, footfall is up 51% and 38 new shops have been repurposed.
It has been hard work. Sadly there are no magic wands. But at the very least, Roeselare has arrested its decline and is managing its future. It is a great place. And, as ITN concluded, it’s a shame that more British towns haven’t adopted the same approach.
So am I brave or foolish in embarking on another review? It’s a moot point. But I felt duty bound to give it another go. And we do, at least, have some of the answers.
Our town centres matter. If nurtured and cared for, they still have the chance of a vibrant future. But if left to their own devices, they will starve to a slow and agonising death. I’ve been in retail for more than 50 years. I’ve seen many things come and go but nothing compares with the scorched earth we are now witnessing.
My thanks to all those who have contributed thus far. And to all those who stand ready to support radical change. It is long overdue.
