Owners and investors have a responsibility to deliver future-ready places

COMMENT The doors have reopened for retail and the buzz is back, but we mustn’t get too comfortable. Our town centres have long played a central role in how we live, work and play. How we successfully curate spaces that reconnect people with place is vital. If we are to remain relevant and resilient amid the ever-changing landscape of consumerism, the role of the retail property owner needs to change dramatically. The traditional owner-occupier model has developed; no longer will owners remain successful sitting stagnant as the “librarian”, solely renting shops, collecting rent and cleaning spaces. What is required now is a much deeper “editorial” role: getting closer to the customer and providing the right content at the right time in the right places. Cultural shift We’ve heard on repeat that Covid-19 has accelerated existing trends. But for retail in particular, it has exacerbated the challenges and opportunities the industry already faced. These challenges can no longer be described as a market shift, but rather a cultural shift in how people interact with place, engage with brands and frequent their town centres. Now, more than ever, consumers prioritise localism, convenience, variety and experiences. To respond to this cultural shift, LGIM Real Assets has had a total rethink of its approach to retail investment and offering, refocusing the value on treating the occupier as a partner and the end consumer as an L&G customer – a strategy that was in motion long before Covid. Take Kingland, a brand-new high street dedicated to start-ups in the heart of Poole. Once a tired and vacant street, it’s now a place packed with a carefully curated line-up of the 10 best start-up brands in Dorset, from a fishmonger and an art gallery to a net-zero grocer and a perfumer. We offered these local independents two years with no rent or business rates, but this wasn’t about giving free shops away to any old retailer. Kingland is about creating space for a creative community to flourish, with a mix of local brands that sit next to our national partners. It’s about bringing a new identity and energy to the town, with retailers that exemplify a strong brand story, beautiful products and a deep-rooted connection to their locale. It’s about diversifying the mix of experiences for our customers and delivering positive social impact. Future-ready places As owners, investors and curators we have a responsibility to ensure we are delivering future-ready places. By bringing 10 new shops into the area, we are injecting vibrancy, driving up footfall and engagement, and delivering value to Kingland Crescent and the neighbouring Dolphin Shopping Centre. However, as long-term investors we are looking well beyond the next 24 months. Further strands to our strategy include a flexible leasing model, a brand-new take on public realm, in-house curated markets and events programmes, plus workspace, wellbeing and education hubs. Kingland is the first of much more to come, up and down the country. While it may be part of a wider future retail blueprint, it’s not a cookie-cutter approach: each offering will be driven through key insights and each local community’s wants and needs. This is where data is essential. We’re measuring all of this through a custom-built in-house data dashboard. Live data is analysed in real-time, allowing us to be proactive and agile in responding to the rapidly changing expectations of our customers. This will ensure that we’re delivering incredible places for people. When you dissect the consumer-centric approach, the all-encompassing benefits are undeniable. As retail owners we want healthy, successful and profitable businesses within our schemes. By adding value, our occupiers will reap the benefits of increased footfall, dwell time and engagement. We will attract more diverse occupiers, and over the longer term the fundamentals of retail kick in. By supporting localism, diversification and reinvention, we are delivering significant social and economic impact. And finally, by retaining and introducing successful occupiers, we are building a more diversified and resilient income for our investors. This will be imperative to bouncing back, and staying there for the long term. Denz Ibrahim is head of retail and futuring at LGIM Real Assets Photo © LGIM Real Assets