Retail Property Insights

Woman filming herself showing items of clothing on a live shopping stream

Live shopping: the past, present and future of e-commerce

28th April 2022

What if the human interaction element of in-store shopping could be combined with the convenience of e-commerce? In case you missed it, selling via online livestreams is the newest online shopping craze, following a pattern of Asian trends making waves on the western retail scene. How it started Although live shopping is a relatively new phenomenon in the UK, televised home shopping (i.e., teleshopping) has been popular here since the late 1970s and was even experimented with as early as the 1950s. Shopping channels such as the Home Shopping Network and QVC were introduced to market products to customers at home through live sales pitches and product demonstrations. This remains a popular sales technique in certain subsectors, such as the jewellery market – JTV still broadcasts to 80 million homes in the US. Although many companies may have since moved away from this sales format, favouring the ease and convenience of online ads and one-click online shopping, newer forms of media are bringing a resurgence of the teleshopping format. Shopshops, one of the first interactive live-commerce marketplaces, was created by Liyia Wu in 2015 to connect retail stores with Chinese consumers. The Chinese live-commerce market is now colossal, with an […]
Trinity Shopping Centre, Leeds

Leasing flexibly: when, why and how?

21st March 2022

Whether it’s big brands marketing a new launch, or new independent retailers branching out into brick and mortar, pop-up shops keep our shopping districts varied and interesting, and increasingly, landlords are seeing the benefits of leasing their units for a short-term period. Traditionally in commercial property, leases between 1 and 3 years are considered short-term. However, interest in pop-up retail has boomed in recent years, highlighting the potential of leases even shorter than ‘short-term’. Pop-ups can be open for a matter of months, weeks or even hours, and this novelty is exciting for customers. When? Drastic fluctuations in the retail industry in recent years, primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic, mean there has never been a better time to experiment with new ways of leasing. With many stores unfortunately not surviving recurrent lockdowns, the UK’s high streets, shopping centres and retail parks are left with tens of thousands of empty units. In other words, there is little to lose. Likewise, the pandemic has been a major setback for many retailers. If they had been planning to open a store prior to lockdown, they understandably may not feel so secure in that decision now. Opening a pop-up serves as a lower-risk...
'Open/welcome' sign on a shop window

Online brands prioritising their physical retail presence in 2022

2nd February 2022

Experts are saying there has never been a better time to open a new store. Even considering the initial impact of the pandemic on the retail industry, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Reduction in commercial rent prices is providing brands with the perfect opportunity to either open their first store or expand their enterprise into new locations. In addition, landlords and agents have become less restrictive about short-term leases, allowing brands to experiment with physical retail in the form of pop-up shops. Here, we will take a look at some of the biggest, previously online-only brands that are using this opportunity and showing us that physical retail is a core part of their 2022 growth strategy. Gymshark Founded in 2012 from the bedroom of CEO Ben Francis, Gymshark has made a huge impact in the world of fitness apparel and supplements over the last decade, having been valued at over £1 billion in 2020. The digital-native brand’s rise to success is largely thanks to its savvy use of social media and influencer marketing. Having successfully experimented with pop-up shops, including their first pop-up in Covent Garden in 2020, Gymshark has recently announced that they will be […]

The Local Footfall Accelerator launches

8th December 2021

What does it take to boost your local footfall in 2021? Here at SaveTheHighStreet.org we’ve been studying this question from all sides, with input from successful local independents and industry experts on our High Street Advisory Board.  There are hundreds of things that can be done by every high street business… And almost as many again by councils, BIDs, landlords and community champions.  This week, we are launching a range of new support to help local independents increase their footfall through this critical Christmas trading period and beyond.  We call it the ‘Local Footfall Accelerator’ and it’s currently free for ambitious retailers, restaurants, salons, cafes, traders, pubs, galleries, laundrettes, boutiques, bakers, makers and other local independents, from startups to scale-ups, in the U.K. The Local Footfall Accelerator is delivered through Jo by SaveTheHighStreet.org.   Jo (JoinJo.com) is our unique business support platform, designed from the ground up to help small and startup local businesses achieve their potential. From shop windows to online marketing, local collaborations, geo-targeted ads, festive events and much more. You’ll find it all in Jo.  Click here to find out more and join the Local Footfall Accelerator – JoinJo.com/footfall SaveTheHighStreet.org has also partnered with a range of […]
Image courtesy of Sook

Retail leasing revived by new concepts

22nd June 2021

In this piece, Dom Millar, CEO of The Completely Group, shares what he’s hearing from Retail landlords and agents and how the face of retail space is evolving.

The Pros and pros of turnover leases – it’s time to change the way we lease

16th June 2021

What could be fairer or more equitable than an arrangement that allows a retailer to pay as they grow – literally as their turnover increases so too does their rent which is set at an agreed percentage– a win:win situation. This article covers the benefits around why, for retail property, we need to Change The Way We Lease

Retail customers are going online to shop offline – locally

12th May 2021

As retail opens back up and lockdowns lift, everyone wants to know the answer to two key questions: how do we get footfall back into retail shops and what does the future for retail online look like?

Two award winning Surrey commercial agents merge to become Owen Isherwood

12th April 2021

Wadham and Isherwood merge to form a new Guildford based Retail commercial agent, Owen Isherwood

Helping town centres market their available properties

12th February 2021

Just launched. - The new Experience Guildford (EG) property portal provides national, independent and local start-up brands with all of the information they need to make an informed decision about opening a local shop.

Creative ideas for landlords with vacant space

5th February 2021

Town Centre’s across the UK are all facing the same problem at the moment, that vicious circle of an increasing number of empty stores with an often-proportionate fall in footfall.

Ground-breaking retail and leisure property listings platform will give access to 90%+ of UK availability

4th February 2021

A new online listings platform created by The Local Data Company (LDC) and CompletelyRetail.co.uk will give access to more than 90% of all the retail and leisure properties which are currently on the market in the UK.

The Revo Shopkeepers Campaign for business rates reform. It’s time to get involved!

29th January 2021

Completely Retail is delighted to support Revo’s ongoing campaign that is calling for a meaningful reduction in business rates for retail and leisure property.