Up to 40% of shops must be reinvented as anything from go-kart tracks to food markets over the next five years or “wither on the vine”.
That was the verdict of a survey of local authorities, landlords, developers and other town centre managers conducted by Revo and Lambert Smith Hampton.
The research showed 61% of those surveyed believed that between 20% and 40% of retail space needs to be reinvented in the next five years for leisure, hospitality, health or civic use, with 12% of those surveyed claiming even more space than that will need to be repurposed.
“There is a danger that if our towns don’t transform then some will wither on the vine before the decade is out,” said Vivienne King, chief executive of Revo.
Steve Norris, head of regeneration and planning at LSH, said: “This shows the scale of the challenge town centres are facing and the radical surgery required.”
