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A High Street Crisis?

The high street is emerging from the latest lockdown with a mission, to get footfall in the shops before Christmas, but not all stores have managed to surface.

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High street giant Debenhams announced this week it had gone into administration, after a last ditch efforts to save, the old chain broke down. Debenhams has been at home on our highstreets for 242 years. Originally founded by William Clark in 1778, the High street giant is set to close all remaining stores putting 12,000 people out of work.

Debenhams’ demise comes after Phillip Green’s Arcadia group collapses into administration, taking big brands name Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins with it.

With the closure of these stores our high street is set to look very different in the New Year but what will be the impact of these closures?

Neil Towers, Professor in Retail Management at the University of Gloucestershire, told us “they both have a significant presence in towns let alone in cities, it’ll have an impact on everything around it.”

Shops like Debenhams and House of Fraser have been a staple on our high streets for centuries with their old, classic department store layout. From perfume to clothes, handbags to shoes, Debenhams provides anything you could want, you can even get your coffee fix.

So why is it now struggling?

Neil Towers told us, “Debenhams is always going to struggle, it’s a format no one likes, the departmental store idea, having everything under one roof really doesn’t work and it’s been struggling for a long time, it’s been in administration three to four times in the last four years.”

As the old giants start to leave, our high streets are beginning to die with them. But is there a way we can bring the people back to our high streets, a way we can keep the heart of our towns and cities thriving?

“We need to re-invent them into an experience the customers actually want to have.”

You only need to look at the Brewery Quarter in Cheltenham or the Quays in Gloucester to see what can be done to keep the High street feel in our towns and cities. Filling the gaps left by the old with new innovative ideas and businesses will bring a breath of fresh air to the dying breed that is the high street.

Only time will tell what the future holds for our beloved high streets.

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