In Focus: Independently minded
The news that John Lewis is to be the anchor tenant of the retail element of the New Street station re-development in Birmingham has been well received.
Understandably so. John Lewis is a quality retailer and is a good name to attract. It will mean jobs at both the development stage and when it’s complete and it will act as a magnet to other retailers to sign on the dotted line.
It will also give Birmingham’s city centre retail offering a different focus. Ever since the Bullring was built the rest of the city centre has suffered from its pull and empty units and discount shops have been to the fore. The link to The Mailbox from the rest of ‘town’ has never really been established and planned retail developments elsewhere, such as Martineau Galleries, remain in the drawing board.
What the New Street station retail offering will do is create a better balance in city centre shopping terms and it could open up other pockets of retail nearby
But what it won’t do - I think I’m pretty safe in saying - is to create an independent retail sector in the city centre.
This is an area in which Birmingham is sadly lacking. It was tried to a certain degree in the Custard Factory area but Digbeth is too far from the main shopping streets for that to have an impact on people who work and shop in the city centre.
Other than that, Birmingham’s retail offering is a little one dimensional. It’s great if you want department stores and chain stores but not so good if you like your retail experience to involve one off quirky shops such as those found in London’s Covent Garden, Brighton and in parts of Manchester and, more locally, Leicester.
The exception to this of late has been the Great Western Arcade, which links the business district and Colmore Row with the main shopping area. This was looking alarmingly empty a year ago as shop after shop closed but it seems to have received a new lease of life as one off bakeries and delicatessens have sprung up in recent months.
I’m not sure how this has come about. I’d like to think landlords have been sensible and offered favourable terms to new tenants of this kind to re-invigorate the area.
When speaking to Insider after the John Lewis announcement this week, Birmingham City Council leader Mike Whitby indicated that the city should support retailers big and small.
That’s good to hear but this stuff won’t happen organically. It will need the council and landlords - possibly via the city centre business improvement districts (BIDs) - to work closely together and to take positive action to identify an area that could become the city’s independent retail sector.
I hope this happens. An amble through the streets of Brighton shows that where you have independent retailers, independent bars and restaurants are never far behind. A quarter of this kind in Birmingham city centre could create jobs, add a string to the bow of those working in the inward investment field and make it a much more interesting place for those of us who already live and work here.
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