Westminster council boss vows to crack down on illicit American candy stores May 3, 2023 The boss of Westminster City Council has called for “greater transparency” about who operates in the city as it looks to crack down on the business owners behind illicit American Candy stores which litter Oxford Street, with the chief urging for more progress from central government to tackle the issue. Cllr Adam Hug told members [...]
UK high streets risk becoming ‘wastelands’ with 15,000 shops to shutter by 2025 August 16, 2023 Up to 15,000 shops could disappear from the UK’s high streets by the end of 2025, a new report has warned, as more and more consumers choose to online over in-store shopping. Data from the Local Data Company showed that between 2018 and 2022, over 41,000 stores opened and 79,000 stores closed, resulting in 37,700 [...]
TfL and Westminster join forces with business to lure shoppers back to The Strand October 19, 2023 A new taskforce will be set up to boost footfall to London's historic Strand district after home working trends hit retailers.
Westminster street renamed ‘Kyiv Road’ to mark anniversary of invasion February 24, 2023 A central London street has been renamed ‘Kyiv Road’ to mark the first anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine by Putin’s Russia. Westminster City Council announced the move to mark the landmark date today. Council leader Adam Hug said: “Westminster is home to Ukrainians displaced by the war, and our residents have opened their hearts [...]
HomeServe founder pours £110m in crusade to revive flailing British high street August 20, 2023 HomeServe founder Richard Harpin is injecting £110m of his own cash into medium-sized businesses, aiming to breathe life back into the UK’s beleaguered high streets. After cashing in on the sale of insurance company HomeServe to Brookfield last year for a cool £4.1bn, the home repairs mogul Harpin said he is trying to “help others [...]
IKEA pushes back opening of Oxford Street site August 24, 2023 IKEA is pushing back the date to open its flagship store on Oxford Street, with shoppers forced to hold out an extra 12 months to buy flat pack goods on the iconic London street. Two years ago the Swedish retailer inked a £378m deal to takeover the former Topshop site, after its parent company Arcadia collapsed [...]
M&S launches legal challenge after Gove blocks Oxford Street store revamp August 31, 2023 Marks and Spencer has launched a legal challenge against the government’s decision to reject the supermarket’s plan to revamp its Marble Arch store. The high street stalwart has accused Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, of unfairly applying planning policy to block the redesign of its flagship store. “We [...]
M&S given go ahead to take Gove to court over Marble Arch store revamp November 20, 2023 M&S has been given the green light to challenge Micheal Gove over his decision to reject the store's plans to revamp its flagship shop in Marble Arch.
London is not a 24-hour city – and Khan needs to change that March 11, 2024 Sadiq Khan must pledge to do more to support our night time industries, making sure they thrive rather than survive.
Crown Estate to stage £430m transformation in London’s West End July 12, 2024 The Crown Estate will redevelop £430m worth of real estate in London's West End in an effort to stimulate the capital's post-pandemic renewal.