BritishBIDr

British BIDs Leadership Network

NO.2: The Future of Town Centres?
The Future of Town Centres
Recognising the growing challenge to town centres, the Coalition Government commissioned the High Street Review in Spring of this year under lead Minister Edward Davey MP in the Department of Business Innovation and Skills. The Review is being headed by Mary Portas, celebrity retail guru, and has attracted considerable media interest. Mary has taken evidence from a wide variety of industry experts, including British BIDs, and BIDs were also well represented at Review workshops and think tank sessions. It is clear to all concerned that the scale of the problem is vast and that quick fixes alone will not suffice. Due to report in Autumn 2011, manageable outcomes that recognise the scale of the challenge will be required for the review to achieve any traction going forward.

Bb Leadership Network
British BIDs is th~ organisation dedicated to the BID industry focused pn thought leadership, research and market commentary We are leading th1eway on the development, management, re~ewal and evolution of Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) in Britain. BIDs are business-led partrershiPs focused on improving and enhancing commfrcial areas including town and city centres, commerclal locations and industrial estates. Recognising the ilportance of shared knowledge we I run a Leadership ~etwork for our premium members to enable high-level ,acilitated dialogues that serve to appropriately posItion BIDs and to provide lobbying and parliamentary liaison. Our premium members include advancedl BIDs together with experienced strategic partners and invited guests. The network focuses on curre1t relevant topics to the BID industry and publishes key messages arising from those dialogues.

The Future of Retailing?

There is a new Retail Rulebook according in its latest 'Retail 2020' publication, June the retail market is changing at pace and needs new guidelines, new relationships, tools. to Jones Lang LaSalle 2011. They report that that the next decade new talents and new

Attended by: HammersmithLo don Ipswich Central I Paddington BID Team London Br1idge Waterloo Quarter Retail Experts: Jbnes Lang LaSalle & Alliance Boots Facilitated by: The Green Brain Chaired by: Britith BIDs For more inform~tion about the Leadership Network and to find out hbw t? join please emall contact@britishHids.info

Key issues raised included technology being a significant game changer; sustainability is a big risk, but also opportunity, for retail investors; diversification will be crucial to survival; quality (or true convenience) will out. Alliance Boots highlight some strong statistics about retailing footfall has been falling for 25 years in town centres; 40% of all consumer spending is now in supermarkets; and e-retailing is now accounting for 8 to 10% of the market. JLL forecast that figure to reach 30% by 2020. JLL's conclusion ... 'Shopping as we know it is dead. Long live consumption'.

JONES LANG LASALLE"

The Green Brain

Thinking of the Future

The British BllDs Dialogue

Town Centres need .... ,
Vision, Strategy and Innovation. BIDs are well placed to lead the way and are considered a critical component of leadership and delivery in town centres.

A summary of the Bb Leadership Nftwork Dialogue on 'The Future of Towr Centres

Next Steps for Town Centres

1. Reinforce the importance of town centres through the National Planning Policy Framework - TOWN CENTRE FIRST policy must be effective. 2. The way we use our town centres will change dramatically and therefore their form, function and offer will need to change to meet and lead demand space format requirements (and therefore PLANNING USE CLASSES) will need to change and the new CLICK AND COLLECT REVOLUTION must be embraced in town centres. 3. Civic, leisure and culture will become even more important to providing an appealing mix to consumers of town centres - focus on retail alone will not suffice. A greater focus on 'COMMUNITY HIGH STREETS' will be the key. 4. Town centres cannot be the 'cash cow' for business rate injection to public services. Currently 25% of business rates derives from retail whilst only 8% of UK GDP is made up from retail. Incentivising town centres through ENTERPRISE ZONES should be investigated. 5. Town centre car parking must be seen as effective attractors to town centres not just as income generators for the public sector. CAR PARK SUBSIDIES should be considered. 6. Management of centres is critical to their future success. Further embrace the BID MODEL by demonstrating great examples of leadership through PILOT STUDIES whilst creating a REVOLVING LOAN FUND to support the set up of new BIDs.

What can BIDs do?

BIDs are business-led innovative organisations that focus on the strategic and the local in a well-defined area. They h~ve proven themselves over the past six years to be significant players at the local level through joined up leadership and reliable operational delivery.

The fifth Nationwide BID Survey launched at the British BIDs Annual Conference in November 2011 demonstrated the scale of the industry now in existence across the UK. For the financial year ~01 0/11 , the surv~y showed th~t an . estimated 60,000 businesses now contnbute throug~ BID levies across the, then, 112 BIDs. To date, 124 BIDs have come into existence and 33 have successfully renewed their mandate for a second term.

The success of BIDs is borne out of their truly 'local' understanding and activity. Their engagement with t~eir business communities is second to none providing a strong a~d cohesive business voice at the local level whilst providing many cost and efficiency savings to those businesses. BIDs help show the way through transparent governance; democratic accountability and constant engagement with their b~siness partners and local community.

Share your views and experience ...

In its short seven year history, the BID industry has more than proven its ability to add value and leadership to Britain's town centres. The industry's expert input to the Mary Portas review has also demonstrated our powerhouse of ideas and vision as well as our ability to deliver practical solutions.