Harper Dennis Hobbs study reveals the UK’s least vibrant shopping area

A study by retail specialist Harper Dennis Hobbs has worked out that the worst place to go shopping in the UK is the West Midlands town of Dudley.

The firm’s Vitality Index gave Dudley the lowest rating of all 500 retain centers that were looked at. Other retail centers in the bottom section of the report were Dover and Bedminster. 

Experts from Harper Dennis Hobbs worked out the score for each place and calculated that towns such as Dudley, Morecambe and Llanelli are in need of both effort and investment in order to start to regenerate their town centers.  

The study reports that the worst 50 retail centers in the UK need to “make serious changes” in order to bring in high quality retail outlets and a higher number of customers. It states that these poor performing centers tend to have a comparatively low volume of spend available and also have a lower quality in their retail tenants.

As well as the volume of transactions and occupancy rate, the study looked at the prestige of each retail outlet and the value it brings to the overall shopping experience there. Their system and Vitality Index allows them to compare centers of different sizes and work out which ones are most vibrant. 

On behalf of Dudley, local councilor Judy Forster said that a £200 million ($318 million) investment in the town center and surrounding area will soon redevelop the town. She went on to say that there is currently an “undeniable buzz” about Dudley town center and that companies should go and visit it instead of writing reports based on “unreliable and out of date information”.

In terms of the best and most vibrant places to do some shopping in Britain, the UK capital was the clear winner. Westfield, Chelsea and Knightsbridge were the top three shopping destinations in the list, with all 3 of them in London. Other London shopping areas to get a high rating were Chiswick, Islington and Richmond.
 

More about shopping malls in the United Kingdom