Over 150 Retail Firms Predicted To Go Into Administration By 2018

One in five shops will shut their doors by 2018, according to a new report.

Findings by The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) reveal that businesses on the high street will suffer considerably in the coming years. The study, ‘Retail Futures 2018’, forecasts that online retail is the main threat and that 164 major or medium-sized companies will go into administration in the next five years.

It has been warned that radical changes need to be made by the government and retailers to “preserve what is best in retailing.”

Key findings include:

• Total UK store numbers will fall by 22% to 220,000.
• Job losses will be around 316,000.
• Online retailing is predicted to grow to 21.5%.
• Around 41% of town centres will lose 27,638 stores.

• Consumer spending has increased by 12% since 2006; however this is outweighed by retail operation costs and rates which have increased by 20%. 
• Consumer spending on the high street has declined by 8% in the last 14 years.
• Retail businesses in Wales, the North and Midlands can expect a higher proportion of store closures.

CRR claim that high streets are threatened by changes in retail structures. Therefore, they recommend that a “pump-priming fund of £320 million is required to start redeveloping these problem town centres to turn failing and empty shops into good residential accommodation, create more service/entertainment/leisure outlets, and/or provide offices, doctor’s surgeries, classrooms/meeting rooms or other facilities for which there may be a local demand.”

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