How to future proof the high street

"Difficult trading conditions” is synonymous with most retail-led news stories right now. Store closures from Mothercare to House of Fraser, subsequent job losses and administrations have become every day events, with Costa the latest F&B operator to blame falling high street footfall for poor results.  So how difficult is it to navigate this uncertainty and future-proof your scheme? 

We’ve created the Virtual High Street (VHS) to measure the impact of current and future trends on retailer profitability. Our latest tool combines our understanding of space and investment requirements with trading performance of stores, and can quantify how the pressures facing retailers across the country will affect their ability to occupy physical stores. Our insights also identify which retailers across key merchandise groups will best respond to the fast-changing retail environment.

For investors this means understanding:

• The impact of future cost pressures

• Which retailers in your centre or portfolio are most resilient to change

• The retailers under increasing pressure without preventive action

• The best tenant line-up and strategies to ensure you have a profitable scheme

FSP has used VHS to model the impact of increasing costs and declining sales on over 100 shopping centre occupiers. Running this analysis found that returning the high street to profitability in the current environment, will require either a 22% sales increase or a 25% reductions of costs.

The Virtual High Street can model the bespoke scenarios currently facing your centre. Using our VHS model, the team can help you understand and navigate the future of your centre.

FSP is delighted to become Pragma property on 1st August, extending our industry-leading property services to a broader global audience.