Mather Jamie is calling on Charnwood Borough Council to take a more flexible approach to town planning if Loughborough’s high street is to become more diverse and maintain occupation levels.
The Loughborough-based commercial property specialists believe a shift in focus, from retail to entertainment, could strengthen the town centre and attract more users.
The call comes following research from the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), which has predicted that one in five high street stores could close within five years.
The Retail Futures 2018 report warns that shop numbers in the East Midlands could be the third worst hit region with shop numbers falling by up to 27%, from 20,950 to 15,294; local independent shops are expected to suffer the worst losses, falling by 26% nationally, as shoppers head out of town.
Alex Reid, of Mather Jamie, comments: “We believe the high street in general will change within the next five years, but it is how well Loughborough can adapt to this change that will secure its future as a destination for shoppers.
“At the moment, shoppers are increasingly heading online or to out of town retail parks, which benefit from free parking and additional leisure experiences, and are able to offer a better retail experience thanks to their large number of big name stores.
“The key to creating a destination shoppers want to visit is to offer more entertainment/social and dining experiences within the town centre.
“Charnwood Borough Council needs to take a more flexible approach to how units are occupied; currently there is too strong a focus on attracting A1 retailers for unoccupied units, this category includes clothing and sports shops, when the primary focus should be on attracting shoppers into the town centre.
“We are urging the Council to consider the importance of drawing a wide variety of new businesses, including A2 and A3 occupiers such as coffee shops, Banks, restaurants and bars, to help create a thriving town centre.
“Loughborough’s town centre has been recovering in recent months and we are receiving a good level of enquiries for available units, but more needs to be done if it is to recover to pre-recession occupation levels.
“The £1.5m expansion of Loughborough’s Odeon Cinema will be of enormous benefit in attracting people into the town centre in the future.”
