November 2011 Archives

Debenhams Announces New In-store Service for the Blind.

By Graham Shone on November 22, 2011 3:44 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
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Debenhams announced today that it will be the first and currently only big-name retailer to provide an in-store bespoke service for blind customers, having worked in tandem with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to identify and address the main issues faced by blind and partially sighted customers in store.

Specially trained personal shoppers will assist the visually impaired customers after having gone through extensive preparation programmes. Among other things, the advisers have trained whilst wearing modified glasses which simulate various degrees of sight loss, enabling the clerks to assist patrons with all manner of sight problems.

In addition to the empathetic training, the personal shoppers have also been taught how to best describe products to those unable to see; and how to communicate sensitively and effectively with the customer.

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The service was borne out of research conducted by the RNIB which indicated that 76% of blind and partially sighted people find shopping difficult or impossible - a signal that the provision of a service such as this in a high-profile outlet is well overdue. 

It is of little shock that Debenhams has been the first to step forward and take action to improve the retail experience for all customers. The brand has shown its willingness to move out of the proverbial stone age by including wheelchair-bound models in national window campaigns, and has instigated a company-wide ban on airbrushing in photography.

I have to say kudos to Debenhams. We can't expect in-store staff to be all things to all patrons, but a gesture such as this to try                           and improve even a small portion of your customers' experience ought to be commended. 

Confusion and Opportunism Reign in Recession.

By Graham Shone on November 21, 2011 2:37 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
What a tough time to be a consumer.

Everything is conspiring against Joe Bloggs in his bid to escape the disorientating and confusing world that the recession has flung him into, and now, according to the Guardian, it seems he can't even trust supermarkets to price items in a non-confusing manner.

Before you judge him, maybe take a look at this accompanying gallery, depicting some of the less well-thought-out price labels on everyday items - and it's not just supermarkets who are guilty. If this continues, I can't imagine it being too long before customers simply take items from the shelves, replacing them with as much money as they feel is obligatory for the product.

Perhaps his escape route lies in a hidden jackpot somewhere. Camelot has recently posted half-year results indicating an increase in ticket sales to £2.45 billion - an increase of 19.9%; and this wave of opportunism is being reflected in the physical retail world as more and more vacant units are being taken over by gaming arcades. Couple this with the fact that high street betting shops have increased their presence by 5% since 2008, and you are looking at a population clearly enticed by the idea of an easy way out.

High-profile governmental figures are throwing their two penneth into this discussion, insisting that something be done on a local level to rein in the avalanche of betting shops and slot machines adorning Britain's streets. The fact is, that with the current figures on high street vacancies, isn't there a phrase involving beggars and choosers that can be applied here? 

I suppose the crux of the matter lies in whether these outlets are on the increase because of consumer demand, or are they simply placed deliberately in areas where people have a higher propensity to use them (i.e: those areas worst affected by the crisis). 

If there exists a demand, then where is the complaint? Landlords are under no obligation to be fussy over who is trading from their premises, and some will go to extreme lengths in order to avoid paying vacancy rates on their properties. Those who claim that a vacant unit would be preferable to an occupied store which focuses on gambling might want to look at the logically sound 'Broken Windows Theory' before proffering such an argument.

Of course, a heavy gaming presence on a high street is not ideal, but very little about the current situation is. All eyes to the heavily anticipated high street review, then, as we await the creative solution which will save Britain from the confusing and overly-opportunistic maelstrom into which it's heading. 

Move over, Google, there's a new pop-up in town...

By Graham Shone on November 18, 2011 9:49 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
Yet another big name e-tailer has announced that it will be slinging itself into the murky waters of high-street retail as the countdown to Christmas brings even more ferocity to the battle for market share.
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On-line auction site eBay will be trialling a new pop-up store in Soho's Dean Street this December, and becomes the latest in a string of on-line retailers to announce a high-street presence. The store will open on December 1st, and close four days later as the internet giant tries to maximise profit from the busiest week of the year for web-based purchases.

I must say the eBay store sounds a great deal more civilised than I first imagined it. I envisaged a giant digital clock on the back wall, ticking down to the countdown theme as frenzied shoppers proffered increasingly ludicrous bids for a towel or crisp emblazoned with the image of Jesus. However, eBay doyens have rendered this pure fantasy by instead featuring barcoded images of more sensible products which, when scanned, direct a smart phone browser to eBay's pay-wall.

This means that by the end of this calendar year, we will have seen Ocado, Amazon, Google, Simply Be and now eBay debut their physical retail presence in high-profile destinations, whilst other big name brands have fully immersed themselves in the world of multi-channel retail. Surely a message to the market that the collision between on-line and high street shopping has now become a fusion; and news that even Tesco is leaning towards space-saving is as big an indicator as any.

Coming soon to the Hoo Peninsula...

By Graham Shone on November 16, 2011 11:43 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
...An entirely new town! 

Medway Council this month received a planning application from The Defence Infrastructure Organisation, (c/o Land Securities and CB Richard Ellis), to turn the site outlined below into a new community:

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At the centre of the 325-hectare site will be a new 35,000 square foot supermarket,
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 supplemented by a further 22,000 square feet of mixed-use retail. The offer is designed to support the occupants of some 5,000 new residential units in the new community who, presumably, will be instantly offered work in the 395,000 square feet of office space; and send their children to one of the FOUR newly-built schools.

So often we hear about town centres looking at redevelopment - it was a little novel to come across these plans; which seem to have eschewed the traditional option in favour of simply plonking a new urban centre on agricultural land. Judging by the photos on the enormous Design and Access statement supplied, the site has been little more than an abandoned train station, used in part for occasional military procedures. 


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The twenty-year development schedule may well render my 'Coming soon' title a little wayward. the images on the right display where and when this new community is going to spring up. These, of course, are outlines. The developers admit themselves that the growth engine for Lodge Hill will be residential development - an element which itself is governed almost entirely by market factors. Site preparation for the first set of new-build homes may not get underway until 2013, meaning that even at the most optimistic estimate, we won't see a completed urban centre until 2033.

Nonetheless, I look forward to viewing the series of reserved matters applications which will supplement this site. Strewn within the planning documents are references to other successful market communities from which all concerned with this project could take inspiration. 

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The Pantiles, in Tunbridge Wells is used as an example of a retail hub within a market town supported ably by the residential community it serves. Also mentioned is Delft in Holland, a municipality whose rustic 13-century design embraced the existing layout of the land on which it stood, allowing for easy orientation via straight, grid-pattern streets. 

Design will be key in ensuring the scheme's success as a market town. Everything needs to be walkable, with little or no chance of sprawl occurring at the site edges; the layout of the town centre needs to encourage flexibility for building uses without running the risk of allowing overbearing architecture to encroach on the town's idiosyncrasies. 

We will have to wait and see just how long it takes for the outline application to get the thumbs-up, but with Medway Council's own economic targets looming over them, it is likely that they will endeavour to get this project off the ground sooner rather than later.


A brewing storm in Croydon

By Annabel Dixon on November 11, 2011 4:16 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Poor Croydon. The town centre is crying out for a cohesive, coherent retail-led regeneration strategy but, judging by this week's events, I suspect it will be some time before a happy conclusion is reached.

 

Westfield's jubilation on Thursday that it is to act as a development partner to the Whitgift Foundation, which owns the freehold and a 25% long leasehold stake in the town's Whitgift shopping centre, was short lived. 

 

It transpired that Royal London and Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, formerly Anglo Irish Bank, which together own 75% of the long leasehold and the management of the mall, had no idea that Westfield and the Whitgift Foundation were striking a deal.

 

The new agreement has all the potential to frustrate IBRC in particular, since it has been advised by Jones Lang LaSalle throughout 2011 on a strategy both for its stake and the wider redevelopment of the Whitgift shopping centre.

 

The indications so far are that the brewing storm will accelerate Royal London and IBRC's ambitions to seek out their own development partner for the mall.

 

Now you can bet that Hammerson, the new owner of neighbouring shopping mall Centrale, and Minerva, which long held ambitions to develop out a neighbouring Croydon retail scheme, Park Place, will both be keeping a keen eye on proceedings. And firms including British Land, Land Securities, Capital Shopping Centres and Lend Lease have all flirted with the idea of investing in Croydon over the years.

 

So which investor - developer will catch Royal London and IBRC's eye? And what will be the reality of having potentially two parallel development agendas for one shopping centre?

 

 

For those familiar with the development of Croydon town centre, this will be just another twist in a long-running saga. But for those new to the scene: watch this space. You're in for a ride.

 

'Pound Shop' Taken to the Next Level.

By Graham Shone on November 7, 2011 10:45 AM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks
The Financial Times reported today that some retailers have been offered absurdly cheap annual rents in order for landlords to avoid paying business rents on "un-lettable" high street units, with Dixons, Clinton Cards and charity shops among the beneficiaries. 

Concessions have to occur between lessor and lessee in a difficult retail market - but some landlords have decided to take things to the extreme by charging a nominal annual rent of £1 on these spaces. This means that for less than the price of milk, bread, and butter, you can now plonk yourself in a vacant unit, and trade for twelve months. Just as long as you're somewhere dreary. And cold.

A little shocking, maybe; but surprising? Hardly. Landlords are spitting feathers over having to pay business rates on vacant high street units, which now make up over 14% of town centres in Britain. I suspect many would prefer to chew off their own arm than risk increasing this figure by sustaining rents at rates only befitting a strong retail market. What we're experiencing is anything but.

One man likely to be particularly aghast at this is Russian billionaire, Maxim Voznesensky, who has recently agreed a deal to take 249 sq ft on Old Bond Street for 18 years at £225,000 per annum - the equivalent of £903.61 per square foot every year. Some basic maths would indicate that this pitch is 225,000 times more desirable than those given away by landlords - yet I'm sure Mr Voznesensky is sitting with his FT and morning coffee, wondering if maybe he should have held out for a cheaper space in one of these cold, dreary locales.

Maybe things would be better if landlords in the housing market were forced into a similar position. The problem of decreasing disposable incomes would be solved, the retail market would be gloriously resurrected, the high street buoyant and town centres thriving - while malevolent, tyrannical house barons sob in a ditch.

I'm not holding my breath...

Christmas Time, Mistletoe and....i-Helicopters.

By Graham Shone on November 3, 2011 9:56 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
So, back go the clocks - and like a Brussels sprout on Christmas day, festive adverts are now to be forced down our throats until December 26th. Joy unconfined for some, unnecessary shared bonhomie for others.

Falling into the latter "Scroogian" category, I have already stolen some coal and wrapped it in newspaper for my next of kin; but retailers competing in an increasingly brutal market have already begun clamouring for the attention of those less stringent, or 'despicable', if you like.

This November will see possibly the earliest ever beginning to the festive sales, as Hallowe'en decorations are quickly stashed away in favour of fake snow, reindeer and Christmas trees as the chosen adornment of shop windows. With the high street in desperate need of a seasonal boost - it's little wonder that brands are trying to get bargain shoppers in early this year.

The high street's major retailers will be competing fiercely with supermarkets - the latter enjoyed a 6.9% year-on-year growth in sales last Christmas; and it would be a brave man to bet against a similar outcome in 2011. Price sensitivity is the order of the day, and the larger stores can undercut the high street on this year's key toys and gadgets.

We may also see an increase in the propensity to shop on-line for gifts. John Lewis last year enjoyed a bumper period - with year-on-year on-line sales increasing by an incredible 42%. Horrific weather conditions last year were possibly the main reason for this, but I would also attribute the increase in internet shopping to simply not wishing to deal with queues or a last-minute dearth of in-store merchandise.

There is quite a conservative view on what this year's top sellers will be. The average RRP of a top ten children's gift is £47.20; for her, £19.89, and for him, £26.47 - a little under what I would have expected - although the average is heavily decreased in this case by the omission of an iPad 2, or a Kindle.

I would personally be ecstatic with a remote control helicopter - see here, although the coal will have to be eschewed in favour of more appropriate offerings. Where can you find good myrrh these days?







 
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