After the experience of the last 10 months, do we really need shops any more? Perhaps we should start by reflecting on how they were created and why we started going to them in the first place. 

Centuries ago, every city and large town had a square: a place to meet for commerce and social interaction. The square was bordered on each side by buildings that provided somewhere to pray (church), learn (school) and be ruled by (government). 

On the fourth side of the square was the market – a bustling space for commerce – which, in those sadly long-forgotten days when we could travel freely, was always on our ‘must-visit’ list because of the connection with the locale and its vibrancy and colour.

Over time, the market was covered over to shield shoppers from the elements, creating the shopping arcade, and then the greatest store of all emerged: the department store. 

Individual shops specialising in certain product categories appeared. The successful ones became chains across the country and some even crossed borders into other countries.

Why did that happen?

As humans we want to go out, meet people, watch what others are doing and wearing. When Selfridges became a public company, we used to say to investors that “50% of the people in Oxford Street today don’t know why they are there”. 

Only 50% might come to buy a suit for a wedding, replace the washing machine or buy new shoes for their children. The other 50% are just on a day out.

They may spend the entire day trying on different outfits, having a coffee or a glass of wine, chatting and gossiping to their friends – maybe buying nothing, but they’ve still had a good time. And that’s OK because they have formed a relationship with that shopping place and they will return.

“Many people have become internet converts and others have increased their online spending. I never thought I would buy a suit online – but I have now”

The advent of ecommerce hasn’t eradicated these desires and behaviours. However, it does mean that physical stores have to work harder to entice people to visit, especially in large urban areas. 

Stores being forcibly closed during the pandemic and a fear of travelling on public transport have caused a step-change in the shift to online.

Many people who previously eschewed the internet have become converts and others have increased their online spending. I never thought I would buy a suit online – but I have now.

What happens when the pandemic is over?

We won’t go back to where we were pre-Covid. Not only is there the effect of the shift to ecommerce (although some of this will reverse when stores reopen), but Covid and the fear thereof have affected people’s psyche. 

Although convenience shopping in local high streets and edge-of-town retail parks is proving to be resilient, the large urban locations will not recover completely because of fears about travelling on public transport and fewer people working in local offices or visiting them as frequently. 

In major cities this will be further exacerbated by a lack of tourists. Even Next, one of the most joined-up retailers in terms of stores and ecommerce and which has recorded resilient results throughout the pandemic, is now forecasting like-for-like sales declines for the foreseeable future when evaluating property provisions.

“For the economics to work for a particular store, the onus is on the retailer to provide a reason for people to visit; otherwise, the store will die. A big cull is already under way”

All of this inevitably fuels the pressure on retailers to have fewer and better stores. The fixed cost base for physical shops is being helped to a degree by landlords being more realistic, but permanent and material reductions in local taxes may never happen.

Therefore, for the economics to work for a particular store, the onus is on the retailer to provide a reason for people to visit; otherwise, the store will die. A big cull is already under way: Debenhams, the Arcadia brands. Even Inditex has announced the closure of 1,200 branches.

There has to be a brand experience because, unless you are trading on price and/or convenience, what’s the point in going to the store? 

On Planet Fashion, significant emphasis is placed on great product and design, and rightly so, but how often is that negated by an unexciting store, a grotty location, poor customer service and insufficient integration between offline and online?

Customers now realise that they don’t need shops in quite the same way as they used to. It’s up to the retailers to convince them otherwise.