THE BIG INTERVIEW The second thing that
needs to happen is that central government needs to take the pressure off independent retailers that has been applied through business rates.
Retail as a whole has been
hit by this, but the big four retailers made a big gain – their shops have gone up in value since 2008 and they’re not going to get revalued until 2017 now. The Government has failed to do any of that. We’ve called for it but they’ve not done it. This government is supposed to be the government of small businesses, but it’s doing absolutely nothing to demonstrate that it is – it is in fact doing the reverse and allowing big business to profit out of this situation. The fourth thing that
needs to happen is that we need to blast our towns into the 21st century and embrace technology in a different way. They need to be wired up and there needs to be free Wi-Fi everywhere – no black spots. All of the retailers, businesses and community services need to be wired in such a way that they’ve got apps and they’re talking to the local community – and that will make a difference.
You’ve disagreed with the Mary Portas school of thought of boosting the High Street – what is it you think is incorrect about her statements and the suggestions she laid out to the Government? The things suggested there are not necessarily wrong, but they’re not going to solve the problem. It’s what we call papering over the cracks. They’re cosmetic and mostly they are designed to grab headlines for a celebrity – and we think that is wrong. The Grimsey Review was written because we were concerned that the Government’s move to actually get the review done
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was being used as a way of driving a TV show and income for an individual. If you read the Portas
review it’s all about ‘me’ and ‘I’ – whereas the Grimsey Review is all about a team of nine people. It’s full of ‘we’ and ‘us’. That’s the significant difference here. We’re not interested in just the quick fixes and papering over the cracks – because eventually the cracks reappear. We want to get to the root of the structural changes that are impacting society as a consequence of 21st century technology and the way that we as consumers are changing. That’s the bit that needs to be recognised and that’s how we’re going to make a difference when some of the recommendations that we’ve come up with are used. Unfortunately the
Government is hell-bent on sticking with the Mary Portas Review, and as a consequence we’re not going to get some of these serious things addressed. So we need to convince other political parties to perhaps pick this up and run with it,
because I do think that in the next general election the High Street and town centres will be high on the agenda for the manifesto. So if I can’t get this Government to look at it I’ll have to take it elsewhere.
“I think the High Streets of the future will be modern wired-up places – an environment that has embraced technology and not been a victim of it.”
Bill Grimsey
How do you see the High Street of 2030 looking? The High Streets and town centres of the future need to become experiences – so rather like the Apple experience is today, which is nothing like a shop used to be. There are no tills, it’s a hustling, bustling place of people getting information and enjoying an experience, and I think that’s going to happen in other sectors very quickly as technology increasingly complements the sale of products. Eventually I don’t see some sectors even having any products in store at all. It’ll all be digital, especially in fashion where inventory is a problem with markdowns and all the rest of it. I think eventually they’ll be booths with hologram fashion displays, for girls particularly to sit and watch. They’ll be able to take pictures and put
Bill Grimsey believes that the Government is failing to address the most serious
issues affecting the High Street
it on Facebook and order after. I think that’s what the question of the future is – how do you create an experience for tomorrow’s consumer, supported by modern technology?
So High Streets are going to have to change a fair amount from what they are at the moment? Yes, and I don’t see them as shopping destinations – I see them as community hubs. Big malls are going to grow up, they’re going to be destinations for whole days out, and it’s important that the independents get some say in that. Which was why we say that if you grant planning permission for a big mall you need to put in a floor for independents and give them special rates, etc. I think the High Streets of the future will be modern wired up places for communities to communicate and connect through technology to save time – so that convenience is right up there for them to live, work and play in an environment has embraced technology, and not been a victim of it.
PCR January 2014 | 31
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