Where have all the shops gone?

I just find the experience of buying online easier, I don’t have to park or use time out of my day. I just don’t really like being in shops and interacting with people.

Roy said:

I would love to support local businesses more but just can’t afford to.

Same for me. It's always nice to support shops locally but the prices can be extreme and in this costly day and age it isn't doable. Last summer I wanted to redecorate the house and the paint locally would have been nearly £200 and I got it online, and the brushes for less than £70.

The cost of rent and business rates makes shops no longer viable, we are all guilty of shopping online as it’s cheaper and more convenient. I used to buy all my car paints and consumables locally, I now buy 90% online with next morning delivery. I was paying £50 +vat per litre for car paint, online it’s half that. A warehouse can be in a low cost area and employ less people. Last week I bought brake parts, I got a quote locally at £120, I bought the same brand online for £52 including delivery, I would love to support local businesses more but just can’t afford to.

Online shopping is killing the high street. I don’t go out shopping in person much but when I do the high street shops are almost always empty, and very few people actually in the street. The main shop where I live is Waitrose and that one is the one that everyone goes to.

Everywhere else is mostly a ghost town.

We did have this really cool shop that sold a bit of everything – clothing, antiques, sweets, chocolate, books – but the council put the car park prices up (like really UP) and it stopped people going there. Within 2 years that shop had closed. So things like that don’t help either.

Most people shop online now, it’s cheaper usually and if you’re like me and hate going out because you get so anxious it makes you sick... online shopping is like a slice of heaven. Only two people I know refuse to shop online and that’s both my grans. They’re from a different generation though and have a deep mistrust of everything electronic, hence they only pay with cash. They won’t do online banking which is what I personally prefer.

Agree with the car thing, a lot of places including my hometown are very anti car, lack of car parking, parking charges if you can find a space etc etc. you are supposedly meant to use public transport….enough said

A lot of town centres also had policies of actively discouraging visitors by imposing parking restrictions and high parking charges, to stop them being too successful (something which is being reversed, but far too late). Then air pollution, congestion, pedestrianisation and zero emissions were more important than having people.

Towns expanded with more house building so that more people, especially the ones with money, lived away from the centre. We created a car centric society. Retail parks with plentiful parking became more attractive. People are also more lazy and walk less.

The high rents and rates in the centre just push shops out.

As it becomes run down crime rises which does not encourage people. COVID policies were actively damaging, I don't think all of that was an accident.

You could say it is intentional to allow buildings to be repurposed into accommodation, which is more lucrative, or to allow redevelopment of land which is sometimes owned the council.

All the online stuff is driven by tax dodges on low value imports which pay no duty and a supply of cheap labour to deliver all the stuff. Driving a van around is not a great job, but costs are rising which is why delivery may not be so cheap. Also the return culture of online clothes shopping seems to be under pressure.

It was all foreseeable, but since there is no joined up thinking no-one sees it as their problem.

Hergé said:

I supposed it's replicated all over the country, buildings are now either empty or house charity shops, nail bars, Turkish barbers or vape stores

Yep.  I live at the other end of this island, near Portsmouth, and the above is exactly what we have left.

In fact, this town was featured in a national newspaper as an example of the decimation of the high street.

I'm in Scotland for some work thing and I visited Ayr for the first time in 20 years or so. There are now so many empty shops on and just off the high street, it's really sad. I know COVID probably had a massive impact but some of them look as if it pre-dates that unfortunate event. From what I remember, Ayr was was always a busy, pleasant seaside town. 

I supposed it's replicated all over the country, buildings are now either empty or house charity shops, nail bars, Turkish barbers or vape stores. 

Maybe if rent and business rates were lowered specifically for small businesses the high street might come back to life.

Unfortunately it seems to be the way a lot of towns are heading. A lot of the better shops don’t seem to be able to make enough business, rates and rent are ridiculous and you can’t compete with online that pay theoretically no rates and rent. In addition a lot of less affluent towns get stuck on the spiral where a lot of the shops are bargain basement shops, cash converters, vape shops, charity shops etc which can compete with online stores but don’t generally appeal to people with money. This has the knock on effect of reducing business in the non cheaper end of things which causes more to close down and the spiral worsens…..

I certainly buy more stuff online as I don’t like the shopping experience these days. The only thing I don’t buy online really is fresh produce as I have to choose this to meet my own specific needs. 

Sorry to hear about your disappointing shopping experience. I know what you mean - I want to see clothes and shoes before I buy them. When shopping online they often don't put the length of trousers or skirts, the sizing is often seemingly random, and you can't tell what the material feels like.

In recent years I've been buying from either Primark, or M&S online as I can get things delivered to my local M&S food store for free. But with their recent cyber attack, M&S have temporarily suspended online ordering. I looked on the Primark website today to see what's available in my local store, so I know what to look for when I get there, but the two skirts that looked promising are not available in store - however I can "click and collect" them apparently! But if I do that I can still end up with something that's the wrong size, too long or horrible material, and having to return it.

We're told that stores are closing because people don't use them, but like Victor Meldrew - I don't believe it! How can people enjoy the lottery of shopping online and constantly returning stuff?

I have never bought shoes online because I need to try them on before buying.  I have often fancied shoes on sight, but when I put them on they just don't feel right. So I don't buy them.

There are plenty of shoe shops left In the big cities.

I've never been to Bangor, but I have a day trip booked to Llandudno and Conwy on Sunday. 

I agree, but if most people don't use shops they close. Everyone wants the cheapest deal.

I am not sure how people buy shoes online, it seems they just send them back if they don't fit. Maybe it works if you just buy the same as last time.

I buy almost nothing online.

Maybe you will need to go further afield.