Council Given Fund To Maintain Social Distancing

Shops selling clothes, shoes, toys, furniture, books and electronics; plus tailors, auction houses, photography studios and indoor markets will all be permitted to reopen on 15th June, subject to completing a prior ‘risk assessment’ that guards adequately against Covid-19 transmission between workers and customers. This reopening date is provisional, dependent on five government tests being met and, at the time of going to press, there were still suggestions from some major shops that they are not going to meet this timetable. 

Most will, however. Primark, for instance, who were previously quoted on the BBC news website as intending to stay closed until “convinced that it is safe and right” to reopen, confirmed yesterday that they will be opening all 153 stores in England on the first available date, having implemented a series of hygiene measures: there will be hand sanitiser stations, perspex screens at tills, and extra cleaning of high frequency touch points; masks and gloves are “being made available to all employees”. 

In the meantime, on 24th May, High Streets Minister Simon Clarke announced the establishment of a new £50m Reopening High Streets Safely Fund for councils across the country “to support their local high streets get safely back to business”. The source is the European Regional Development Fund. It is said to be additional to all other subsidies currently being dispensed from central government, and has been offered on a per capita basis: thus Hastings Borough Council (HBC) is in line to receive a share of just over £82,000. The money was intended to be available by 1st June. 

Councils are not allowed to spend their allocation on direct financial support to businesses to make adaptations to premises, purchase protective equipment, nor offset wages or other operating costs. Rather, they have been directed to intervene in guiding movement through areas of high footfall such as transport hubs, high streets, shopping centres, parks and promenades, with a view to the maintenance of social distancing and avoidance of conflict. A range of practical safety measures is expected, including temporary signs, street markings and barriers. 

Councils will also be able to use their funding allocation to develop local marketing campaigns to explain the changes to the public and “reassure them that their high streets and other commercial areas are safe”.

HBC seems somewhat nonplussed both by the suddenness of the allocation and by its limited application. Council leader Kim Forward said: “As we enter this new phase of shops reopening, our priority will be, as it has been throughout this pandemic, the safety of our residents. Although we are grateful for any funding we receive to help our town recover from this crisis, especially given our challenging financial position, this money won’t go very far across all of our shopping areas to help support the reopening of our local businesses and high streets.

“It is also unfortunate that there are some rather rigid and limiting rules about what the money can and can’t be used for, and a lot of bureaucracy and form-filling conditions normally only seen with schemes of millions of pounds. We will do all we can to make the money go as far as possible to help make our high streets as safe as they can be.

“The first we heard about this scheme was on Sunday, during a bank holiday weekend, so we are working to understand the guidance and consider how best to use this fund. It is an example of the additional unplanned work that we are having to undertake whilst keeping our services running, protecting residents, supporting businesses and taking care of our staff.”

Local Conservative councillors in Hastings have described the extra funding that is being received from central government as “very useful” and “timely”. However, as reported elsewhere in our news coverage, they criticise the refusal to reopen public toilets and other amenities.

High streets across the country have empty shops and an entire shopping mall recently sold for the price of a house. As many as 14 shops are closing every day, according to a report from accountancy firm PwC, with 2,692 stores shut down in the first six months of last year.

Hastings town centre, dominated by the Priory Meadow shopping complex, superficially appears relatively healthy with comparatively few vacant premises inside the complex or on surrounding streets.

However, many of the retailers present are local branches of national chains, each with their own problems. The good news is that Primark opens in March, replacing BHS as one of the two big destination shops. Sharp prices and (unusually these days) no Internet presence may prove a big draw, attracting customers from out of town and increasing footfall in surrounding premises

The other big Priory Meadow store is Marks and Spencer, serving a more upmarket demographic with food and fashion. One of Britain’s most iconic brands, it has had a torrid time of late. Around 100 stores, not yet all identified, are slated for eventual closure. With another large branch just down the road at Ravenside having much better parking (M&S customers can afford to drive) there are inevitably concerns for its future.

Almost opposite Primark, and serving a similar customer base, is another troubled fashion chain, New Look. They have recently announced the closure of 85 stores (again, the exact locations are still to be announced) with the lay-off of over 1,000 staff.

Almost next door HMV has, in the short term at least, a future. It has been rescued from insolvency (the second) by Canadian music chain Sunrise. The new owner appears to be pinning hopes for success on sales of vinyl. But Hastings already has three such outlets, including Wow and Flutter close by. Perhaps a better bet would be to emulate the savvy staff and wider music range of the Fopp outlets, also owned by HMV?

Debenhams lies on the fringe of the main shopping area. Flaky exterior paint (take a look from the seaward side) and all the interior charm and excitement of a 1970s East German department store. It is a national chain in deep difficulty. Part owned (25%) by Mike Ashley, who also includes Sports Direct and House of Fraser in his portfolio, Debenhams is currently planning store closures countrywide, the exact shops currently unknown. Given its usually sparse amount of customers, the local branch looks vulnerable, and what other use might the large building be put to should it close?

A food chain, Pizza Express, also attracts punters to the Priory complex. Like New Look its problems are complex and financial rather than product based. The Daily Express reported: “The company is owned by Chinese private equity firm… is due to repay around £650 million over the next three years. But their efforts may fall short, as the total debt accrued by Pizza Express amounts to more than £1billion, according to the group’s 2017 annual report.” The firm has also suffered from the rising cost of food, high rents and business rates and minimum wage increases.

A big problem in the retail sector is private equity investors (who usually know nothing of shops and care less) buying profitable retailers, often at a high price. They use the assets as collateral to take out loans and fund generous shareholder dividends and directors’ bonuses. However, with physical outlets declining in favour of internet purchases and rising revenue costs (see above) owners are often unable to meet the interest on debt repayments.

Much more than a local problem the worse may yet be to come for Hasting’s larger shops.

PICTURE MONTAGE: Colin Gibson

Hastings Borough Council’s Area Action Plan (AAP) highlights eight potential ‘opportunity sites’ which could be developed over the next 15 years in order to boost the town’s economic development and growth.

Within the town centre, the areas pinpointed for improvement and redevelopment include Morrison’s car park in Queen’s Road, Wellington Place and Albert Road, while Priory Meadow shopping centre  – described by the council as “doing much to establish  Hastings’ position within the retail hierarchy” –  is designated for extension. Further proposals indicate that Cornwallis Street car park could include more shops and 20 new homes.

In Bohemia, HBC has a ‘masterplan’ for the area behind White Rock which includes building 660 new homes, a leisure complex complete with tennis courts, plus a brand new music and entertainment venue, in place of the White Rock Theatre.

The plan, available for comment on the HBC website, stresses the importance of safeguarding and enhancing the vitality and viability of retail areas in Hastings, which are, it states, under threat of losing shoppers to centres at Eastbourne, Tunbridge Wells and Ashford.

“This would lead to a decline of the town centre and maybe an inability for it to serve even the needs of Hastings residents,” it goes on to say.

Priory Meadow, built on the town’s old cricket ground
PICTURE: Colin Gibson

However, with branches of retail outlets abandoning town centres across the country in the face of online competition, high rents and business rates – leaving inevitable redundancies in their wake – Hastings has been no exception to this national trend.

The collapse of BHS left a 38,600 square foot empty space in Priory Meadow Shopping Centre, set to be filled by the Irish clothing chain, Primark, next spring.

More recently Top Shop, followed closely by River Island, closed their doors to town centre shoppers. River Island is set to be replaced with another, as yet unnamed, ‘major retailer’, while H & M and Marks & Spencer, which both occupy units in the shopping centre, have announced they will be closing hundreds of shops nationwide.

In addition, the town’s only department store, Debenhams, has also declared it will close around a hundred shops across the country and downsize dozens more.

None of these companies have yet revealed whether Hastings will be affected by the closures. However, a spokesperson for Debenhams – which employs 126 people in this town told us: “We announced our intention to restructure our organisation around three business units: Beauty & Beauty Services, Fashion & Home and Food & Events earlier this year. Our work to create a simplified and consistent structure across these units, reducing complexity and driving efficiency in order to deliver our Debenhams Redesigned strategy, is continuing.”

She added: “We’d like to see a level playing field for all retailers. It is important to keep our high streets vibrant to continue offering choice and quality to consumers, however they choose to shop.”

“Business rates create distortions and we look to Government to ensure the system is fair to safeguard against a negative impact on both businesses and communities.”

Recently, Chairman of the Business Improvement District, Colin Dormer – and former manager of jewellers F. Hinds –said he thought the trend of big retail collapses and closures could be positive for the town by potentially encouraging more small businesses.

“There’s been a resurgence of small independent shops, new businesses, and different styles of businesses. That’s a natural progression: people are going to get new opportunities because there’s no longer that mass competition. We’ve almost come full circle in my view. Years ago there were lots of independent shops, and there weren’t many big chains, and its almost going round again.”

If this pattern is to continue, however, it does highlight potential difficulties in filling the gaps of the 290,000 square foot Priory Meadow Shopping Centre – now owned by one of the UK’s largest property investment companies, New River – with major ‘anchor’ shops that will enable the town to compete with neighbouring shopping centres.

If the centre, built in 1997 on what was the town’s cricket ground, is to be extended, as signified in the council’s AAP, it will need to attract large retailers able to afford the higher rents and business rates.

A RETURN TO THE OLD HIGH STREET?
Meanwhile, on Queen’s Road, one of the main routes into town, a combination of low rents, business rates, property prices and close proximity to the town centre, is attracting a growing number of small businesses. Their presence is having a positive impact, not just on the road’s cosmetic appearance but on the community as a whole, through the friendly and unique services and goods they offer.

The Imperial pub reopened in 2016 as a micro-brewery selling wood-fired pizzas. The Drift In, a cosy bar selling locally brewed cider and German beers opened its doors in July. Further down, is the more established restaurant Cookhouse, Mexican restaurant Xochipilli, and the Grand Rue de la Pera – a congenial café stocked with books, which also hosts poetry evenings. The Queens Deli and Shop, which opened in November 2017 and the Printed Matter bookshop, are more examples of the changes happening here.  Across the road from the deli the Yi Pin Oriental Food Express opened its doors just weeks ago.

Clothing boutique, Pure, which sells European-style garments in linens and colourful fabrics, has been here for twelve years, while Chef’s Ware, which sells quality kitchen utensils and appliances at competitive online prices is a further recent addition and is already expanding into the neighbouring premises less than half a year after opening.

Angus Francis-who co-owns Chef’s Ware with his father said the rent in Queen’s road was low enough that he didn’t have to pay rates. But to rent a shop further down the road near to Priory Meadow and the pedestrianised shopping area would cost three or four times more, plus a hefty business rates bill. “The old Boots, in the centre of town is £78,000 a year and it has got less space.” he added.

“I couldn’t imagine being in a place like Robert Dyas, for example, you would have to have a really high turnover to survive.”

“But these bigger shops are all going to fall down, they can’t justify something that doesn’t turnover the value of their rates and their rents.”

Jez Smith, owner of the Queens Deli said businesses in Queen’s Road would certainly benefit from the extra footfall large chain giants such as Primark would bring to the town. Primark is bucking the trend nationally because it doesn’t have an online presence.

“That large retailers are struggling and closing down has got to have a lot to do with the internet,” he said.

“If people are going to go out shopping in a high street environment, what independent retailers offer is a level of service you can’t buy online.”

He added that attracting retailers like Primark would be a fantastic endorsement for
the town. “I think that anything that improves Hastings as a proposition is a good thing.
I don’t think it matters which section of the demographic it appeals to, it is essentially about the more the merrier, and for Hastings to appeal to a wider spectrum of people.”

“Service, knowledge, fresh produce – that’s where you might see the re-emergence of what was essentially the old High Street. For instance, people come in here and they talk to one another.”

“Cosmetically things could be smartened up, everything needs a good old scrub up round here.”

“And I think that the council has a responsibilty to somehow put Queen’s Road on the map.”

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