Retail in Liverpool

[eyesparky]

Originally Posted by Chris B

Anyway know which unit this relates to?

From the Planning Explorer -

Application Number - 08F/1516
Site Address - 58 Church Street, Liverpool, L1 3AY
Applicant - British Land In Town Retail Ltd
Proposal - To enlarge windows at first floor level

Application Number - 08A/1517
Site Address - 58 Church Street, Liverpool, L1 3AY
Applicant - British Land In Town Retail Ltd
Proposal - To display 1 no. illuminated projecting 'blade' sign at first floor

http://www.britishland.com/in_town_retail.htm

British Land In Town Retail are some kind of landlord, but I wonder who the tenants are?

Not sure but might be Miss Selfridge (small Church Street entrance and larger first floor space).

[buggedboy]

Good guess, it is Miss Selfridge indeed.

[Portobello Red]

Bold vision of Liverpool's Canarby Street

Liverpool Daily Post

Jun 11 2008 By Alex Turner, Daily Post Business Staff

TRADERS in Liverpool’s independent, quirky shopping street are, surprisingly for their image, quite a homogenous bunch.

There is broad agreement of what Bold Street is and of what it should be. To them, Bold Street could be Liverpool’s answer to London’s Carnaby Street, or North Laine, in Brighton...

...continued

[Awayo]

Carnaby Street is pretty bland and corporate nowadays. It is filled with the sorts of shops that are in the Met Quarter.

Bold Street is already a bit like the North Laine.

[Chris B]

From the Daily Post -

Bold Street feels pinch as Liverpool One opens

Jun 11 2008 by Richard Down, Liverpool Daily Post

BOLD Street’s shops are suffering a downturn in trade following the opening of the first phase of the £1bn Liverpool One retail development.

According to some of the street’s retailers, their worst fears are coming true as Liverpool’s shoppers bypass Bold Street’s stores and head for Grosvenor’s Liverpool One development, opened two weeks ago.

Traders say they saw some uplift in trade in the first few days after Grosvenor opened on May 29, but that initial flurry has given way to a decline in sales.

Neville Boyars, owner of fancy dress shop Smiffy’s, said: “At the moment, with Liverpool One now open, Bold Street is becoming just a passing through zone and that’s going to be the same for any location in the town.

More here - http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/...4375-21054754/

Without wishing to be insensitive, was it not obvious the that the current situation would happen? For the time being, Liverpool One is still very new, there's a novelty factor, an interest in visiting it - something that will remain for a while yet. I wouldn't have expected the existing retail area to have become anything other than a passing through zone for the time being.

However once the novelty value wears off, and the city centre settles down, only then will it be possible to assess the impact of Liverpool One on the existing retail area. I think it's a case of weathering the storm as I personally think that Liverpool One and Bold Street pitch at two very different types of customers. Therefore the Bold Street customers that may have been attracted to Liverpool One through curiosity will likely return - it may take a while, but it should happen.

[T0M]

I agree Chris. And I genuinely do not believe that the city owes any retailers a living, simply because 'they were there first'. If you want to survive in retail you have to adapt. Bold Street has the opportunity to carve out a real niche market for itself, but until it does so successfully it's bound to suffer.

Bold Street probably has the least 'cross over' in terms of the type of shops with L1 than any other area in town, and so should not only survive but thrive in the long run... only time will tell.

[Chris B]

I've just been down to Belle Vale, and it's full steam ahead on the new extension. The area bordered in white below has been cordoned off (with a small covered passageway marked in red maintaining access the centre).




Large mounds of earth and heavy machinery are clearly visible over the hoardings so presumably the digging of foundations is underway. Looking at the artists impressions on the hoardings this as well as providing more retail space, the extension will also be more modern in style than the current centre. (The minor extension built in the early 1990's merely copied the existing 1970's architecture). It also appears that the extension will use windows, unlike the existing part of the centre that is inward facing and blank to the outside.

[eyesparky]

Competition within the retail offering is a good thing and will only improve the overall standards. When the rest of Liverpool One is open Bold street will find itself bordering the development and many people will use it as a route into the area. I think the footfall to Bold Street will only improve due to the current development. If Central Village goes ahead half of Bold Street will likely be involved and the entire street will become an improved retail draw. Whether all the existing retailers will be able to cover future rentals will remain to be seen.

[flange]

Ollie & Nic sets sights on 30 UK shops within five years

Bags and accessories retailer Ollie & Nic is gearing up for ambitious expansion, with plans to open 30 stores nationwide in the next five years.

Ollie & Nic, which has three UK stores at present, will target big cities such as Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham initially. It will focus on smaller towns for the second stage of its roll-out.

The retailer opened a store last week at Foubert's Place, off Carnaby Street in London, which will provide a blueprint for the expansion. The new store design, created by design company Leckenby, uses an eclectic mix of materials, mid-century modern furniture and wallpaper.

"We wanted the store to have a Pandora's box-type feel to it. We want customers to feel like the store is one big dressing table and there are all sorts of things to discover in all corners," said Ollie & Nic director Nick Hill.

"We also wanted it to feel a bit tongue-in-cheek so customers feel comfortable browsing."

Ollie & Nic has enlisted property agent CWM to find stores of about 650 sq ft. It will open at Bristol's Cabot Circus scheme in the autumn and will refurbish existing stores with the same design as its Foubert's Place store.

The retailer's web site will also be overhauled in September to include new interactive features. "We already have a transactional site, but we're hoping to include some tools on researching gifts and to make the site more user-friendly," said Hill.

Hill, who set up Ollie & Nic with his wife Jane in 2002, said customers respond well to the brand because it stands out on the high street. "While the economic climate is difficult at the moment, we believe that, for some customers, there is a move away from value," he said.

"Our customers really buy into the Ollie & Nic lifestyle and our brand is cherished because it's a little different to the norm. You don't necessarily see that elsewhere on the high street."

http://www.retail-week.com/Property/...ive_years.html

[buggedboy]

Good to see that we are back on the hit list.

[Chris B]

Might be one to keep an eye on -

Ann Summers also has plans to relocate its stores in Glasgow and Liverpool into larger premises to create flagships with the new fit-out.

http://www.propertyweek.com/story.as...rycode=3116567

[Scouse!]

I think Liverpool needs too keep up I think you know the biggest retail development going on right now is Liverpool one and then we have the overhaul of St.Johns i feel after this liverpool needs to carry on developing, you go over to the Retail in Manchester forum theres all kinds going on and Liverpool needs to keep up on this to keep interest on the city.

[andy_01]

Originally Posted by Scouse!

I think Liverpool needs too keep up I think you know the biggest retail development going on right now is Liverpool one and then we have the overhaul of St.Johns i feel after this liverpool needs to carry on developing, you go over to the Retail in Manchester forum theres all kinds going on and Liverpool needs to keep up on this to keep interest on the city.

Central village should be getting under way in a few months time which will be a big project and will include retail units.

[nrkintheuk]

'Up and Running' the running specialist (obviously!) is apparently coming to Liverpool in August. Occupying 8 Bold Street which I think was the original Monsoon store. A good addition (for me at least) and hopefully signs that Liverpool One relocations are being replaced?

http://www.upandrunning.co.uk/shops/liverpool.php

For info the Manchestre branch is in the triangle.

[buggedboy]

Brilliant.

Another example of a Liverpool One store relocation having a happly ending?

I might just add Up and Running to my list.

[Chris B]

That's great news. Far from what the doom-mongerers would have had you believe that Liverpool One would desecrate our existing shopping areas, the exact opposite is true. Through the re-letting of vacated units, the existing shopping areas are actually being re-vitalised by the addition of new names, which can only be good.

[and-r]

so what occupied 8 bold street after monsoon, as they were at clayton square for sometime

[ramsbrook]

Originally Posted by Chris B

That's great news. Far from what the doom-mongerers would have had you believe that Liverpool One would desecrate our existing shopping areas, the exact opposite is true. Through the re-letting of vacated units, the existing shopping areas are actually being re-vitalised by the addition of new names, which can only be good.

I agree Chris Ive been quietly impressed how quickly stores such as WhS, River Island, Zara and Gap have been snapped up following their relocations (In River Islands case, pending move). Also Lord St has re-development in the long vacated store next to BhS and Im sure (although no proof) that BhS will have a major refurb when Burtons relocates back out of BhS into its home next to Primark. Im just hoping the M&S redevelopment is on a scale we hope for as described in the M&S thread - to really make it a premier Top 5 store - we should hear in the next few months; Im kinda thinking with the economic conditions and the stores poor national trading it will be substantial but not not quite as grande as we hoped . Finally, it would be good to hear some new signings for the lower South John St...theres probably around 8 vacant units excluding the 3-4 'Coming Soon' signs to suggest stores are on the way. Contrast that with the upper level which is more fully occupied... it seems the pedestrian flow is higher on level 1 than the ground floor - particularly as when coming from the Debenhams end you have to actively choose to visit the lower level and walk down the steps and also the carpark entrance comes out on level 1. I think John Lewis has more footfall from its Level 1 entrance than ground floor, yet the design is not as spacious as the ground floor entrance.

[nrkintheuk]

Originally Posted by and-r

so what occupied 8 bold street after monsoon, as they've were at clayton square for sometime

Think they kept that store too though it might have been a sale shop?

[flange]

Hamleys unveils fresh look on Regent Street

World-famous toy retailer Hamleys unveiled the first part of the refurbishment of its flagship Regent Street store last week, with a mock-up of a London bus at its heart.

Hamleys has overhauled the ground and top floors of its seven-floor London store. Hamleys trading director Paul Currie said the new look is intended to enable the retailer to "bottle the Hamleys brand in order to make it more portable".

He added: "This brand has got massive equity that has never really been captured and taken outside London."

Designed by US consultancy Chute Gerdeman, the ground floor features a mock-up of a London bus and a tree filled with toy bears – part of what the retailer describes as "Regent's Bear Park" – designed to capitalise on the store's proximity to Regent's Park.

The top floor features an organic café, called Regal Tea Café, a party room and an -electronic-toy department, -selling robots, toy cars and gizmos aimed at men and teens, said Currie.

The refurbishment of the entire store is expected to be completed by 2010, to coincide with Hamleys' 250th anniversary.

The toy retailer plans to transfer elements of its London refurbishment to new stores. It will open a shop in Dubai in August, which will feature a mock-up of a London bus and a cardboard cut-out of Regent Street, which it calls a Regent Streetscape. On the streetscape, its shop will be called The Joy Emporium – the original name for the Hamleys store when it opened in 1760.

Currie said Hamleys will focus on further standalone stores in the UK once the Dubai outlet is up and running. Possible locations include cities in the north of England, such as Manchester and Liverpool, and Scottish cities, including Edinburgh and Glasgow. However, there are no firm plans at present.

http://www.retail-week.com/Stores/20...nt_street.html