retail
With the latest closure of its Shepherd’s Bush Westfield store, House of Fraser has completely withdrawn from Central London. Following recent closures across sites including London’s Oxford Street, Leeds and Norwich, the remaining estate numbers around 30, nearly half the stores House of Fraser occupied before its 2018 administration.
A study by The Centre for Retail Research has attributed the majority of store closures in 2022 to store rationalisation programmes by multiples, rather than insolvencies. Many closures were also due to independents closing stores permanently, the study found. CRR director Professor Joshua Bamfield said that he expected the rationalisation trend to continue into 2023 “as retailers continue to reduce their cost base at pace”.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted a challenging six months ahead for retailers, with an expected rise in sales of only 2.3%. The BRC also said, however, that they expected sales to make a recovery in the second half of the year, as inflation eases and consumer confidence returns. BRC director of insight Kris Hamer said: “Ongoing inflation will make sales appear to be rising, but we expect falling volumes as consumers continue to manage their spending.”
Leisure
Big Mamma Group are set to open their latest London restaurant this month on High Street Kensington. Jacuzzi, described as a “four-storied pleasure palace”, is set across 400sq. ft., with 170 covers. The restaurant is promised to be the group’s most luxurious venue yet, with a Sicilian mezzanine on the third floor with a retractable roof.
Property
Marks & Spencer is set to occupy 100,000sq. ft. of the former Debenhams building at Grosvenor's Liverpool ONE development. The store will open in mid-2023 and will host the M&S food hall, clothing and home ranges across two floors. Gravity Active Entertainment has taken 100,000sq. ft. on the upper two floors of the building.
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