As consumers continue to fuel the retail industry’s recovery by upping their spending, high streets are once more beginning to look at how they can capitalise on the economic recovery to entice consumers back into town centres.
Many are choosing to do this by entering the running for the Great British High Street title, with the battle intensifying as the deadline for entries draws closer.
New High Streets minister, Penny Mordaunt, has urged towns and cities throughout the UK to submit their applications before the 30th of August, calling the national competition a “fantastic way to celebrate the nation’s greatest high streets.” She has now written to all town teams and local communities throughout the UK as a means of raising awareness for the competition as she believes it is essential that all areas of the country are represented.
In a statement, she said; “This competition is about celebrating the work local people do to make their high streets great places to live, work and shop.
“Our high streets are bustling again and we want to find the hidden gems the country has to offer and share their tips for success.
“So if your area hasn’t entered already then get cracking and don’t miss the chance to be named the Great British High Street.”
The competition, which was launched earlier this summer by the Future High Street Forum, offers local communities the chance to win a prize pot of £50,000 which can be used to fund a regeneration programme or improvement scheme. The winners will also receive dedicated support and mentoring from experts within the retail and leisure industries – this can range from one to one coaching on compiling a good business plan, to the chance to attend a workshop based on the benefits of digital marketing.
Entrants can submit an application into one of seven categories: city centres, town centres, coastal communities, villages, market towns, parades and London.
As well as making the process of deciding the eventual winner fairer, this will allow experts at the Future High Street Forum to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the separate categories in order to determine which strategies will work best in future.
Although the situation for high street retailers has improved hugely since the end of the recession, recent data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) indicates that work still needs to be done in order to tempt consumers away from online opportunities or out of town retail parks.
In July, the high street fared worst in terms of footfall when pitted against shopping centres and retail parks, hinting that consumers are not entirely satisfied with the offering found in their local town centres.
The BRC remains adamant that, without business rates reform, the high street will continue to struggle in the future and independent retailers will be squeezed more than ever. Hopefully, the winner of the £50,000 prize money will be able to use the funds to ease the pressure upon small businesses in need of a boost.
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