What is on course for our High Streets over the next couple of years?  Will we still have a retail offering spread right across the town centre, or will we find pockets of alternative uses and more flexible use of our shops?  

We think the answer is a mix of traditional retail with alternative uses and a return of residential homes above the retail.  Worthing town centre has nearly 1.1m sq ft of existing built stock which is arguably over supplied in a shrinking retail bricks and mortar market, so this will become a real problem for the town if we do not start to think outside the box in conjunction with relaxing the planning laws which did form part of the chancellors budget announcements.  

Towns will quickly need to adapt if they are to survive the threat from online giants. 

With more residential conversion, residents will need other services such as restaurants, bars, medical facilities, schools, dentists and all of the many things that just can’t be bought online.

Shopping parades as we know them will remain but will be reduced in size as other ‘lifestyle’ businesses open around them.