Bournemouth retail scene ‘decimated’, say indies

Later this month the seaside town of Bournemouth will lose its last remaining department store, as Mike Ashley’s House of Fraser store on Old Christchurch Road will permanently close its doors on Sunday 13 March.

It follows the closure of New Look in January 2022, Marks and Spencer in December 2021, Debenhams in May 2021 and Beales in 2020.

Independent fashion retailers have told Drapers that multiple store closures, coupled with parking issues and underinvestment in the town, are deterring shoppers from visiting the area.

“Bournemouth’s retail scene has been decimated,” the owner of one womenswear independent in Bournemouth told Drapers. “Retail footfall has largely disappeared because of the council’s parking policy.”

She explained that there has been a reduction in on-street parking throughout Bournemouth in the last two years [because of a change to Bournemouth Council's parking policies which has reduced the availability of on-street parking], and shoppers are instead encouraged to travel by public transport or park in purpose-built car parks. She said that, given that a large proportion of Bournemouth shoppers are elderly, it makes it difficult for them to visit stores with ease.

“We are one of the last remaining roads with on-street parking in the town,” she said. “While this has made us really busy, because customers can park outside our store, people from Bournemouth get in their cars and go elsewhere [to shop]. The council wants to keep cars out, but it hasn’t kept shoppers in - it has driven then elsewhere.”

She detailed that many shoppers have opted to drive to Poole, a neighbouring coastal town in Dorset, to shop rather than seek out and pay for shopping spaces. She said this decline in footfall traffic has had a big part to play in the exit of bigger retailers: “Parking and general underinvestment has led to the closure of stores. Bournemouth is very affluent area, but shoppers are driving elsewhere to shop. If shoppers are provided with safe, pleasant, convenient parking those stores might not have closed.”

The owner of a womenswear store in Bournemouth said: “We are not trading as well as we want to be - business has been very slow. We have a fair amount of footfall, but people aren’t as eager to stay in town and browse which has had a negative impact on us.”

She is concerned by the number of large vacant units on the high street: “For us the exit of the high street retailers have been positive in one respect as customers that would usually shop there have found us instead. However, it has led to a lot of empty retail units which does not make Bournemouth attractive and appealing to prospective shoppers.

“The council needs to invest in the public spaces and roads to bring people and retailers back.”

The owner of a menswear store in Bournemouth agreed: “Even though we would define ourselves as a specialised store, we have suffered from falling footfall. The exit of department stores has prevented people from travelling to the area. The increase in parking charges has also contributed to this. People have less to entice them to Bournemouth.”

The owner of a second menswear store said: “The road our store is located on needs a cash injection [to improve the look and quality of the roads and street]. There is talk [from the council] that this is happening, but it needs to be in a way that benefits retailers. For example, the roads should be made more attractive. Beach goers tend to spend a long time in town, but not in shops. It is about targeting these audiences and making it more appealing from them to stay and browse.”

Bournemouth Council did not respond to requests for comment.