howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
i think mary portas should take a look at sandgate road in folkestone.
didn't look very clever this morning.
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
Very cheeky of that denim clad thug to be staring back at you through binoculars Howard.
Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
you're right tom, looks like a right herbert to me.
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
Is it to be hoped that along with the drive for Government Grant that retail acreage could be marketed centrally? [after that slightly odd request for informal assistance on this very matter recently?]
Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.
Keith Sansum1
- Location: london
- Registered: 25 Aug 2010
- Posts: 23,942
HOWARD;
Thing is with folkestone, its a long stretch to fill
unlike dover that activly encourges out of town shopping killing the town
ALL POSTS ARE MY OWN PERSONAL VIEWS
Paul Watkins- Location: Dover
- Registered: 9 Nov 2011
- Posts: 2,226
Sad state of affairs when the charity shops[Barnados] closes.
High St won't improve until you can offer consumers, competitive pricing ,more display & shelf space, more online collection options, better customers services, greater car park spaces & spacing & that really does not touch the Portas agenda.
Consumers shop where they want & not with sentiment, loyalty or inconvenience.
Quaint & specialism works in certain parts but even they feel the pince in tough times are normally the first to go.
Most High St retailers, i.e. small local retailers live on a whim & prayer & have other family members working who support their main income.
Watty
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
The main barrier to filling retail space is that it costs next to nothing, and is probably an 'earner', to keep shops empty.
Denying off-sales licenses to out of town supermarkets would also be a step forward.
Royal Mail having a high street presence for the collection of bulk items is one of your better thoughts Watty.
Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.
How sad! I haven't been right into Folkestone for a long time, only down at the sea front that has been re-furbed. I had no idea it was so desolate.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
didn't actually bother going down guildhall street, just looked at the beginning of it from sandgate road and immediately saw 3 empty units together.
internet shopping is here to stay but hopefully out of town shopping areas will be curbed in future.
Paul Watkins- Location: Dover
- Registered: 9 Nov 2011
- Posts: 2,226
Howard unless you can provide space in Town Centres then you are stuffed.
In Dover's case B & Q , MFI [now defunct] were prime example give us space to expand or we go.
The trick is to re provide & not lose otherwise they move out & retail leakage is to other Towns with those jobs & spend.
Supermarkets don't really matter they compete with one another, it's the other types of retail/showroom warehousing that counts.
You can impose all the restrictions you like but the market moves where the demand is.
Watty
Supermarkets have really expanded thier product range and are brand for brand competators with electrical clothing and homewear retailers not just other supermarkets .
I had to edit this as I had typed Supermerkats , which in my opinion would be a better store anyway
Paul Watkins- Location: Dover
- Registered: 9 Nov 2011
- Posts: 2,226
Indeed Sarah , but the attraction is display space , online availability & competitive pricing.
Watty
Sorry Paul Im probably being thick are you agreeing with my post about Supermarkets or saying that you dont . Ive got a bit lost ( nothing new there then )
I think he is endorsing supermeerkats.........
Paul Watkins- Location: Dover
- Registered: 9 Nov 2011
- Posts: 2,226
Agreeing the point you made Sarah. Just stating why people shop there.
Just to further the point I was making earlier, they all do it as you have identified, so they tend to compete against one another. The horse has bolted in stopping them.
Watty
Cheers Paul , one of the other points I was making is that they also compete against the independant retailer and the specilaist chain , they sort of have a win win situation
Paul Watkins- Location: Dover
- Registered: 9 Nov 2011
- Posts: 2,226
Agreed.
So the others have to be special,competitive & offer excellent back up services.
Watty
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
Indeed Sarah, they are free to rob towns of their high streets. If there can be no stopping them and high streets are simply doomed we may now see Councillors talking themselves out of a job. Along with much of the council's staff.
We all might as well hand the whole job of government, local and national, to the supermarket triumvirate.
A few more unemployed will hardly be noticed and it PROBABLY COULD save a great deal of money.
The residents can then take it in turns to throw up their arms in dejection and dismay. After all the electorate only pay the taxes and additional fees and receive sage-sympathy. When, in this brave new world we can all swap empathic gestures as we meet on our winding-way between and around the advertisement hoardings and displays.
If Councils can do nothing, what are they worth?
Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.
Bern
I want one
Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
sarah,you can get a meerkat or 3 from the rspa shop in town,its there best seller.
