Study finds East Northants has seen the biggest decline in retail space in the UK
Our spending habits have changed drastically over the last 18 months as the world of retail has been forced online as a result of the global pandemic. Now the high street has reopened, only 42% (-16% since the pandemic) of consumers have returned to shopping from their weekly.
Alongside the ever-growing takeover of the digital world, the retail sector has transformed significantly to appeal to a new kind of consumer, with high-street shops and the way we purchase goods set to never be the same.
But what is the current state of retail across the UK, Europe and the rest of the world?
The retail sector makes up just 34% of the UK high street on average
The high street is no longer just a shopping haven. Today, we see former retail space being used to fulfil other purposes, including housing and office space. On average, housing makes up the largest part of the high street (53%) with retailing following behind, occupying 34% of the UK high street.
One area that has been heavily affected by retail closure is East Northamptonshire. Over a three-year period, the region experienced a 35% loss of retail stores on the high street.
The top 10 locations with the highest decline in retail space:
| Rank | Location | Current retailing space | Average % change 2015-2018 |
| 1 | East Northamptonshire | 33.60% | -34.95% |
| 2 | Broadland | 20.40% | -21.67% |
| 3 | Southwark | 17.80% | -12.41% |
| 4 | Tower Hamlets | 15.40% | -11.72% |
| 5 | Uttlesford | 25.30% | -10.77% |
| 6 | Salford | 38.30% | -10.52% |
| 7 | Hackney | 16.70% | -10.46% |
| 8 | Three Rivers | 25.30% | -10.09% |
| 9 | Newham | 24.20% | -9.76% |
| 10 | Pembrokeshire | 34.60% | -9.60% |
For many towns and cities, retail space has been on the decline for years with the rise of online shopping and e-commerce. The recent global pandemic has no doubt accelerated our changing shopping habits.
Joe, Founder and CEO at Veo talks about the effect lockdown has had on consumer behaviour:
“With regard to the effect the pandemic has had on online shopping, a number of business leaders (including Jon Roberts of AO.com and Dragon Theo Paphitis) declared as early as May last year that COVID-19 had accelerated 5 years of online shopping behaviour changes “into just five weeks”.
Crowdfunding platforms like Seedrs are calling online retail “the fifth emergency service” which is needed for business resilience so organisations can survive.
Even with the rise of online shopping, according to Ethical Consumer, people spent around £3.4bn in local shops during 2019, and as people continue to stay close to home, this figure is set to increase significantly in the future. Research has indicated that 60% of consumers have said that post-pandemic they expect to buy from local shops (compared to 40% shopping locally pre-COVID), giving a promising indication to independent retailers outside of major towns and cities for 2021 and beyond.”
Number of shoppers visiting the high street once a week has declined by 16% on average since the pandemic
Prior to Covid-19, 59% of Brits were shopping in real life at least once a week, with more than a quarter (27%) of people buying items on the high street at least 2-3 times a week.
In the present day, there has been a 16% drop in the number of people shopping on the high street at least once a week, as only 42% of consumers have returned to buying from there weekly. In fact, a quarter of consumers (25%) are spending on the high street less than once a month.
Daily high street shopping has dropped by 3% during Covid-19 from its original 6% prior lockdown – and has only recovered by a little over 1% currently.
UK shoppers believe ‘finding a great deal’ is the most important part of the shopping experience
Shopping is a complete experience for customers and is the reason why many of us continue to visit the high street even though there are alternative methods that can be argued to be more convenient.
The most important things consumers want from their shopping experience:
| Rank | Important factor | % of people who believe this is important |
| 1 | Finding a great deal | 49% |
| 2 | Seeing, touching, and trying out the item in person | 36% |
| 3 | Speed and convenience | 33% |
| 4 | Ease of finding the product | 29% |
| 5 | Buying something from the comfort of my own home | 25% |
When buying something, the top factor for UK shoppers is finding a great deal, according to 49% of respondents.
Other top factors include being able to see and test the item in person (36%), and the speed and convenience of the purchase (33%).
The least important factor listed is financing options available, such as in-store credit card or buy now pay later, only considered by 8%. However, as the likes of Klarna continue to become more popular, this may change in the coming years.
Cameron Worth, founder at Sharp End expressed to Savoo how to get people back on the high street: “What we are already seeing is that retail is becoming more of a showroom for experience rather than transaction. What we are trying to do now is draw people back into the high street with a heightened and optimised retail experience, which isn’t just around buying stuff but brand experience.
In terms of technology being used, we are starting to see concept stores being opened up all over the place – total reversals of focus rather than flagships stores focusing on transactions they are looking at virtual try-ons, in-store augmented reality that can bring products and assets in-store to life”.
Primark crowned the nation’s favourite high street shopping destination
The high street is home to some of the most quintessential British clothing stores. Giving shoppers not only affordability but also accessibility, shopping on the high street sometimes is really the best choice.
With many stores closing down, there are some that we hold closer to our heart than others and would be heartbroken to see go.
Here are Brits top five favourite stores on the High Street that we’d hate to see closed down:
| Rank | Retailer | % of people favour the retailer |
| 1 | Primark | 11.44% |
| 2 | Marks & Spencer | 8.40% |
| 3 | Tesco | 7.76% |
| 4 | John Lewis | 6.72% |
| 5 | T.K.Maxx | 6.16% |
It may come as no surprise that Primark is the nation’s favourite high street shop. Founded 52 years ago in 1969, the store has built its way into the public heart thanks to inexpensive, fashionable items.
The number of Brits shopping online doubled over the course of the pandemic
45% of British shoppers were purchasing non-essential items online at least once a week before the national lockdown. At the peak of the pandemic, over half of shoppers (54%) were buying goods online at least once a week.
Many consumers were internet shopping on a more frequent basis, as the percentage of people that online shopped 2-3 times a week increased from 19% to 26% during the lockdown period.
8% of Brits were shopping online daily during the pandemic – which is double the amount before the pandemic.
Online shopping continues to be a popular purchasing method for customers post the high street reopening and the roll-out of the vaccine, with half of Brits (50%) buying non-essential products online at least once a week.
Savoo spoke to Bernard Meyer an eCommerce marketing specialist at Omnisend about the push the pandemic has had to online shopping. He commented: “The pandemic has shifted nearly everything online, and those brands that were able to make that digital shift flourished. This applies to all types of stores, although high street, being generally larger businesses, were also slower to make that change.
Because the pandemic has taken up years of our lifetimes, it’s very likely that these digital-first shopping behaviours will stick. Shopping had already been moving online over the past decade, and the pandemic has simply accelerated that. All the evidence suggests that this will continue”.
The e-commerce market is set to be worth over $6.3B by year 2024
By 2020, $4,280B was being spent in the e-commerce market worldwide. If global spending continues to grow, we can predict that by the year 2024 $6,388B will be spent shopping online, which is an increase of 22% from 2014.
The current e-commerce spending frequency in the UK sits at 18% while the highest globally is Vietnam, with a 57% frequency. India and China have also seen major leaps in e-commerce spending at 55% and 50% increase respectively.
The full impact of the pandemic on the retail industry is yet to be fully known, but it is clear to see that there has been a shift in the industry and things are unlikely to ever be the same.
Commenting on the findings, Ed Fleming, managing director at Savoo adds: “The high street will never be the same again since the outbreak of Covid-19 as it has accelerated the movement to online shopping that had already started making waves before 2019. The future of retail doesn’t solely lie in the hands of consumers – retailers have a huge part to play too in shaping the future of the customer experience.
With online retailers offering next-day or even same-day delivery without shoppers having to leave their house, now is the time for the high street to adapt to consumer needs and tap into the key reasons consumers are still going into physical stores.
The pandemic has led to a change in shopping, which is here to stay. Consumers are now looking to support local businesses rather than chain stores and looking to make fewer trips to the high street.
In order for the high street to survive and stay as a staple in British culture, the shopping experience should remain at the forefront for retailers. Stores should be offering an experience that people can’t get online or on their phones if they want to keep attracting customers.
Although some consumers are reverting to the high street, retailers need to consider that there are factors at play now. As more competitors continue to pop up in online spaces, it should be noted that shoppers value that in-person experience that only the high street can offer.”