The Daily Mail, 9 September 2010
Though the recession is officially over, its fallout is still spreading through the high street.
The proportion of stores that are empty rose from 12 to 13 per cent in the first half of the year.
In some towns, particularly those in the North, the figure is approaching 30 per cent and expected to rise.
Close to a third of shops are empty and derelict in some towns, research reveals.Though the recession is officially over, its fallout is still spreading through the high street.
The proportion of stores that are empty rose from 12 to 13 per cent in the first half of the year.
In some towns, particularly those in the North, the figure is approaching 30 per cent and expected to rise.
Blackpool has the worst shop vacancy rate for a large shopping area - 29 per cent - according to research by analysts at The Local Data Company.
Bradford has a vacancy rate of 25 per cent, while Wolverhampton, Doncaster and Hull have figures that are little better.
Among smaller shopping areas, Altrincham, Greater Manchester, has a vacancy rate of 30.04 per cent and Margate, Kent, has a rate of 27.55 per cent.
Evidence suggests that once the proportion of boarded up shops in an area reaches a critical level, vandals move in and shoppers stop visiting the remaining businesses.
The report, titled The Gathering Storm?, said: ‘Overall at the half-year, there are many more centres getting worse than getting better.’
The analysts found that 21 of the 25 worst performing large shopping streets have seen a rise in shop vacancy since January. The same pattern was seen for 21 of the 25 struggling smaller retail areas.
The figures also exposed the severity of the North-South divide. Of the worst-hit large shopping areas, just three were south of Watford.
These were Watford itself, Bristol and Reading.Mind the gap: Towns in the north of England are suffering from high street shop closures with up to 30 per cent of stores sitting empty in towns like Doncaster, Blackpool and Hull.
