A new high street can’t save a town – but jobs and trains will
by Phillip Inman from on (#3CKAA)
Revamping shops to prop up a town centre is the wrong approach: retailing will improve on its own if cities can attract employers or prosperous commuters
If Christmas showed us anything, it is that the high street is dying in most of our towns and many of our cities. Figures emerging from the main high-street shops covering the Christmas trading period show that a combination of falling disposable incomes and internet shopping seriously dented sales.
Next was one of the first fashion retailers to reveal that its festive cheer had all been online, where sales rose 13.6%. Its high-street stores suffered a 6.1% slump.
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