The urban renaissance of local shops has already started in some areas
This morning I was really happy to hear that Mary Portas has been assigned the task to carry out a government review to look at the problem of empty shops and what can be done to prevent the growth of ’clone towns’.
The death of small independent shops and the rise of multiple chain stores is an issue close to my heart, I live above a small parade of shops and in the years I have lived in Sutton, Surrey, I have seen my local post office, butchers, two florists, a bakers and a greengrocers all close down. But why is this happening?
Context
The Car: In recent years, according to Moseley (2000) (who has written substantially about the decline of local shops in rural areas in the UK) identified how the car has changed patterns of supply and demand, this means people are moving around differently and are no longer wedded to their local shops. This in turn has meant that people have more choice and so have the freedom to shop not just in their local area but also perhaps near where they work which could be miles away from where they live.
Peoples Quality of Life: Moseley (2000) and Gallent (2008) also identified as peoples quality of life have improved, so have peoples demand for better quality goods and more choice.
The Rise of the Supermarket: The supermarket can often soak up the money spent in the local economy (leaky bucket theory NEF) and has the advantage of economies of scale (they can order in massive quantities at a cheaper price). As a result they can sell goods more cheaply and local shops struggle to compete on price and by the range of goods sold in one place. The other aspect is that supermarkets are wonderfully convenient, – I am also guilty – I do most of my shopping at Sainsburies and Tescos (but I wish I didn’t). The reason for this is that its convenient – I can get everything under one roof, they sell at a price I can afford, it has a level of quality that I trust, its open during hours that are convenient for me and I enjoy the food that I buy there.
The Internet: has changed patterns of supply and demand, people no longer have to shop locally, they can also shop on ebay, Amazon or search on Google for the lowest price goods – across the entire globe, so its not surprising that some local shops have suffered as people have so much more choice and are arguably more price sensitive.
Solutions
Moseley (2000) states that the the decline of shops in rural areas can be tackled either through government support, business initiative or through community action. I feel the same can be said for local shops in urban areas:
Government Support: Local authorities could provide support either through cross subsidy (where possible and appropriate) such as business rate discounts for local shops or funding to improve shop fronts (through shop development schemes), subsidised business training, or an easing of regulation. In one case, Moseley (2000) found a local authority eased planning regulation to enable a council flat to be turned into a post office for example.
Business Initiative: Some shops in rural areas are diversifying so that in some cases pubs take on the role of a post office and petrol stations are also selling fruit and vegetables in rural areas. The same can be done in urban areas.
Other shops in rural areas are expanding/changing what they sell to fit changes in demographics in local areas (such as processes of gentrification). Some convenience stores in rural areas are now renting out dvds, selling lottery tickets etc. Mary Portas’s TV programme tackled this problem by helping local shopkeepers to identify what local residents actually want to buy, creating a visual identity that embraces a business model and the businesses values and by providing excellent customer service.
Partnership Working: Moseley’s research (2000) found that some local shops bought produce together in order to be able to bulk buy and compete on price with supermarkets.
Voluntary Action: It is not uncommon for some local shops in rural areas to be staffed by volunteers. Shops have a social value and help to create community cohesion by encouraging interaction between people. There is no reason why this could not (if it is not already happening) take place in urban areas.
Creating Social Capital: According to Falk and Kilpatrick social capital can be encouraged by creating more interactions between people, street parties, cafes, good quality public space, car boot sales, jumble sales, summer fetes all help, in my opinion to create social capital.
Bottom Up Decision Making – Neighbourhood Planning: The new Localism Bill may be able to help local residents to have more of a say on where houses, shops and businesses get built in their local area. The main barriers to enable people to do this, according to Farnsworth are: obscure planning methodology, a culture of ‘we know best’ attitude amongst planners in local authorities, too much paper work, not enough results from communities involvement and not enough resources at local authorities disposal to engage effectively with communities.
Differentiate: In order for local shops to survive they need to provide a product/service that supermarkets cannot compete with; for example supermarkets do not provide great customer service (in my experience) and they do not have a great deal of flexibility to sell small quantities of things, which tends to leave out local produce for example. Mary Portas has identified this flaw in supermarkets, one example is Clealls – a local shop in Corfe Castle where the owners were losing £6000 a month because they were not selling what local residents wanted and the shop keepers hid away from people in the local community. Mary Portas turned this around by finding out what residents wanted – which was local produce (in plentiful supply in and around Corfe Castle) and shopekeepers who took part in the local community.
Go Mary!
References:
Farnsworth, D, 2011. A Network Route to Localism in Planning. Town and Country Planning Journal, (March 2011 p128-132)
Gallent, N, Juntti, M, Kidd, S, Shaw, D, 2008. Introduction to Rural Planning. Oxon: Routledge.
Moseley, M. 2000. England’s village services in the late 1990’s: entrpreneuralism, community involvement and the state. [Online pdf] Available at: http://www.jstor.org/pss/40112435 [17/05/11]