Being of a certain age I am increasingly conscious of the way in which time appears to accelerate rather than remain a constant.

Being of a certain age I am increasingly conscious of the way in which time appears to accelerate rather than remain a constant.

Online trading in the virtual world is acting as an accelerant in the retail world. Historically, the life cycle for a retail format from infancy to maturity (ie, the time it took to refine an initial concept, find the sites and resources to open and operate 200-plus stores) was at least 15 to 20 years.

Today, the potency of social media, celebrity endorsement and the like can create global brand awareness and recognition and online sales in a few years. The challenge for retail management has shifted from growing the business to controlling and managing the growth. Thus, Superdry is seemingly in danger of becoming yesterday’s brand almost before many people have recognised its extraordinary leap from obscurity to iconic status.

The recent senior management appointments reflect an essential rearguard action to install the infrastructure and professional disciplines required for the current size of the business, while the merchandise itself has to provide ‘value’ beyond the logo.

Arguably the most abused word in the English language today is ‘brand’ and this is especially true in retail where there is an increasing danger of companies getting just ‘15 minutes of fame’.

The unhappy Jaeger and Aquascutum sagas show how, despite potential opportunities and heritage, a brand has to be loved and positioned correctly in order to prosper.

Yes, the growth opportunities are now global – what had been retail’s Achilles heel has been de-risked by the internet – but plan the resource allocation well in advance and guard your brand as your most precious asset in the way that Ray Kelvin has always done for Ted Baker.

We cannot turn the clock back in the way that Mary Portas would do for the high street and Tim Waterstone for books. I empathise with them – to me a high street without a bookshop is a soulless cultural void.

Many suppliers, particularly of luxury goods and electronics, are supporting traditional retailers but they may end up like King Canute.

In tomorrow’s reality the internet gives power back to the brands, which can communicate directly with customers and in effect the retailer/distributor becomes redundant.

The retail space race is over, except in the sense that everyone wants the same space. Thus vacancy rates nationally are around 14% to 15% while Capital Shopping Centres, for example, has only a 3% vacancy rate. Nationally vacancy rates will move beyond 30% while getting into the big regional shopping centres or the 50 or 60 desirable city or town centres will remain problematic and expensive.

This polarisation is consistent with the polarisation of customers (the haves and have nots), the polarisation of retailers (brands versus commodities) and the polarisation in performance (growth versus liquidation).

Management must resort to first principles and provide what the customer wants – a seamless multichannel experience encompassing the five main shopping routes. It’s not the economy, stupid.