I think an overarching measure would be more effective. Amazon, yes, but also Google, Facebook, Boots, Top Shop, a large proportion of the national newspaper proprietors, Virgin and many in the House of Lords.
Is the High Street doomed
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I think an overarching measure would be more effective. Amazon, yes, but also Google, Facebook, Boots, Top Shop, a large proportion of the national newspaper proprietors, Virgin and many in the House of Lords.
Saul Goodman
It's all good, man
Sounds good to me. But I'd extend it to everyone in the House of Lords, and by extend, I mean execute.
The Boots thing in my (fairly small) town is actually not that bad.
There is a big branch on the High Street. Opposite that is a small opticians branch and another small (more pharmacy) branch next to the doctors.
The two small branches are closing this month and are being amalgamated into the big one. Pleasingly no staff (here at least) are losing their jobs.
There is a big branch on the High Street. Opposite that is a small opticians branch and another small (more pharmacy) branch next to the doctors.
The two small branches are closing this month and are being amalgamated into the big one. Pleasingly no staff (here at least) are losing their jobs.
I agree that Boots does bring a lot of patronage to the high street, and is probably a good thing in that regard, even if they're a little too big. I'm sure they could continue to deliver much the same service if they brought their tax affairs back to the UK.
Nothing will happen on tax avoidance for at least four years, given that the PM for many years wrote for and took a great deal of money from the Barclay brothers, who split their time between Monaco and a hollowed-out volcano in the Channel (and the High Court for one of them recently).
Nothing will happen on tax avoidance for at least four years, given that the PM for many years wrote for and took a great deal of money from the Barclay brothers, who split their time between Monaco and a hollowed-out volcano in the Channel (and the High Court for one of them recently).
Dogsauce
I’ve got Skol but I’m not a Scholar
Yeah, it’s a pile of shit and just winds people up, most other companies have a more sophisticated way of gathering customer information than pointlessly bureaucratic membership cards. I could see a certain Mr Ashley taking this one on as it’s a good fit with some of his other types of outlets, expect it to reappear with garish ‘70% off’ price stickers everywhere.
Doodler
You're quite nice when you smile
He seems to have a habit of snapping up companies which are in the doldrums so you could turn out to be right. Yes, big discount stickers and put-upon staff trying Mountain Warehouse style upselling.
My area has lost the local boots and a few other shops during lock down. Very busy part of town with a lot of elderly people. If you don't drive, the nearest chemist is a 15/20 minute walk from the Boots chemist and I don't really have any mobility problems. Mind you my local high street has started to get a bit of a name for itself lately and I would hazard a guess that that has had a knock on effect on the amount of business passing through at the moment.
Marks & Spencer to cut 950 jobs in latest Covid-19 blow to high street
Redundancies at stores and head office follow job losses at John Lewis and Boots this month
Going through the city centre earlier there seemed to be a lot of to let signs up.
ska invita
back on the other side
long read
www.ft.com
makes zero mention or rent/rent holidays, which is one key factor
anyhow on the parade of shops at my work in central london of 10 shops/food spots 3 have already shut for good, two re-opend earlier this month and closed again "temporarily" due to lack of footfall, one had already shut down pre-Covid, and the rest just look fucked to me. It looks like a total collapse from what i can see.
my suburban home high street looks fine, as more people are working from home so i guess theyre getting business off that, but its hard to know for sure. the only thing ive seen shut down there is a barbers that didnt make it through lockdown.
‘Calm before the storm’: UK small businesses fear for their future | Free to read
More than four months since lockdown began, many companies are running out of cash
anyhow on the parade of shops at my work in central london of 10 shops/food spots 3 have already shut for good, two re-opend earlier this month and closed again "temporarily" due to lack of footfall, one had already shut down pre-Covid, and the rest just look fucked to me. It looks like a total collapse from what i can see.
my suburban home high street looks fine, as more people are working from home so i guess theyre getting business off that, but its hard to know for sure. the only thing ive seen shut down there is a barbers that didnt make it through lockdown.
He may not sweat, but I'm sure he's crying today.
ska invita
back on the other side
Not high street but supposedly Hayward gallery on the Southbank in London is laying off around 80% of staff and in the future only 10% of the space will be for art, the rest sublet, pop up style. This from someone losing their job but third hand info. Can't see anything online to match that
An "interesting" bellwether if true
An "interesting" bellwether if true
Bahnhof Strasse
Met up with Hannah Courtoy a week next Tuesday
Central London is fucked, it relies on the worker drones and if they are all WFH the businesses that feed off them are finished.
Since shops all reopened my local high street has been busy, a lot of people in my town commuted to London three days a week and WFH’d the rest, the last five months they have not gone in to London at all, so are spending their cash locally. Can’t see this changing, it’s thirty quid a day on the train, just to sit in an office. My parent company rents a ginormous office just off Trafalgar Square, it has been empty since March and even when this shit is just a bad memory people won’t want to slog in each day, can see them downsizing massively. I ain’t set foot in the place in over four years...
Since shops all reopened my local high street has been busy, a lot of people in my town commuted to London three days a week and WFH’d the rest, the last five months they have not gone in to London at all, so are spending their cash locally. Can’t see this changing, it’s thirty quid a day on the train, just to sit in an office. My parent company rents a ginormous office just off Trafalgar Square, it has been empty since March and even when this shit is just a bad memory people won’t want to slog in each day, can see them downsizing massively. I ain’t set foot in the place in over four years...
Monkeygrinder's Organ
Dodgy geezer swilling vapid lager
Yeah I think there'll be a lot of that. On the upside though maybe there might be room for some more interesting independent music/art/whatever type places to start to flourish again, the things that have been squeezed out by millions of branches of Pret and identikit bars that are only busy from 5-7 on a weekday. There'll always be something going on in Central London.
ska invita
back on the other side
Going into Central London is almost a pleasure at the moment... I've never had an issue with tourists, amazed anyone would want to holiday here, but what's exhausting is the millions of out of town commuters, moodily trudging in and out of London every day. They really spoil it, and their numbers keep growing
If the allure of central locations dies that would be a great thing on multiple levels
Decentralising the UK has been a front line issue for years now
Artaxerxes
Look out, he's got a gnu!
It’s confirmed on one of the museum/arts groups subscribed to.
It’s not a good time to be working for a gallery or museum right now tbh.
ska invita
back on the other side
tories did a simlilar thing not long ago i seem to remember George Osbourne was involved? - my local parade of shops at the time ended up like this
so shit
cant see how this is going to affect the Intu shopping mall up the road
Dogsauce
I’ve got Skol but I’m not a Scholar
It‘s fucked up because these conversions don‘t need to comply with minimum space requirements etc., and similar conversions of old office blocks have resulted in families living in 20m2 of space, it encourages the worst kind of slum landlordism. All about letting the free market take control, race for the bottom stuff.
Common failings in permitted development office conversions
Issues of space, light and amenity in office to residential permitted development schemes
These conversions also have no requirement to provide affordable housing as part of their development, unlike new builds.
Doctor Carrot
Marxist Henchman
Am I in the minority by thinking the death of the high street can't come soon enough and the sooner it's put out of its misery the better? When I say high street I mean city centre shopping areas. I think they're bloody awful.
Soulless slabs of concrete with either chain shops, vape shops, tattooists, coffee shops or charity shops. They all look the same too. Look at the place below it could be anywhere couldn't it (you'll get the answer if you look of course)
These sorts of places make me feel grimy in my soul whenever I visit them. Turf them over with grass I say and put a roof on it so it can be used in all weathers. Have food markets with entertainment, cinema screenings, clothes stalls and independent local businesses. Just something different from these grotty old things that are a relic of last century.
Soulless slabs of concrete with either chain shops, vape shops, tattooists, coffee shops or charity shops. They all look the same too. Look at the place below it could be anywhere couldn't it (you'll get the answer if you look of course)
These sorts of places make me feel grimy in my soul whenever I visit them. Turf them over with grass I say and put a roof on it so it can be used in all weathers. Have food markets with entertainment, cinema screenings, clothes stalls and independent local businesses. Just something different from these grotty old things that are a relic of last century.
Saul Goodman
It's all good, man
Couldn't agree more. Burn the lot of them to the ground, and replace them with fucking big amusement parks.
platinumsage
HaveMyPassword123
I just did an Ocado shop following their switchover from Waitrose to M&S products. There goes the last reason for me to regularly go shopping in town.
Sad for the employees of course but good to see this overpriced bread hawker struggling given their owners past 
www.bbc.com
Pret A Manger to cut 3,000 jobs in the UK - BBC News
The sandwich chain will slash 3,000 jobs as part of a rescue plan for the business.
www.bbc.com
Artaxerxes
Look out, he's got a gnu!
Following up on previous posts, the south bank is pretty fucked.
313 staff from the Tate going. (Many notified Friday night ready for bank holiday, that was nice). 400 odd at the national theatre and south bank centre.
www.theguardian.com
Mix of roles, mostly front of house but also editors and book producers.
Trying to get an idea of the other big museums, I've heard a few rumours about the Kensington ones.
313 staff from the Tate going. (Many notified Friday night ready for bank holiday, that was nice). 400 odd at the national theatre and south bank centre.
Arts workers on South Bank in London rally against Covid job cuts
Redundancies at Tate, National Theatre and Southbank Centre prompt protest
Mix of roles, mostly front of house but also editors and book producers.
Trying to get an idea of the other big museums, I've heard a few rumours about the Kensington ones.
ska invita
back on the other side
Places like the Tate sit on endless art that doesnt even get displayed - permanently in storage. They could sell a couple of paintings and that would pay for everyones wages. Thats aside from what other imperial sugar trade money they maybe can still access
300 workers on 30k a year is 9million - peanuts in the art world at that level
300 workers on 30k a year is 9million - peanuts in the art world at that level
Artaxerxes
Look out, he's got a gnu!
There's only so much room to display things, never been any budget to digitise everything either. That may change, maybe, now. A lot needs to be taken care of or stored perfectly as well.
Museums and galleries are very much icebergs when it comes to collections.
35 jobs going at Bletchely Park, a third of the staff.
Bletchley Park Trust announces job losses - Museums Association
Organisation says it must restructure to survive financial impact of Covid-19
www.museumsassociation.org
skyscraper101
0891 50 50 50
I’ve been going into the office in the City for the last week. Just to have a break from the WFH fatigue. It’s been surreal. Just quiet everywhere. I quite like it tbh.
ska invita
back on the other side
exactly - more art than they know what to do with - so flog a picture or two, keep 300 people employed and save the hassle and cost of rehiring
Artaxerxes
Look out, he's got a gnu!
Aye.
Also when it comes to wages of the people being let go your probably looking at closer to 20k than 30k.
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