Are there too many charity shops in Sevenoaks?
Could some of the six charity shops in Sevenoaks town centre be under threat in the future?
Retail specialist and television personality Mary Portas appears to have divided opinion following leaked reports that she believes the number of charity shops on high streets should be limited.
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Mary Portas has been appointed by David Cameron to look at how to revive the UK's High Streets. But could this mean a cap on charity shops?
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The Sevenoaks Cancer Research UK and Quit Charity shop in the High Street. For a walk through the chairty shops, empty stores and offices to let go to the Sevenoaks People photo gallery.
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The Sevenoaks Hospice in the Weald outlet in London Road, Sevenoaks. For a walk through the chairty shops, empty stores and offices to let go to the Sevenoaks People photo gallery.
Portas recently starred in the TV documentary Mary Queen of Frocks, but in 2009 she also made Mary Queen of Charity Shops in which people were encouraged to 'Donate not Dump'.
A section on her website www.maryportas.com explains the Living & Giving charity concept that Portas developed for Save the Children as a result of the show.
Therefore reports that she used a recent meeting with the All Parliamentary Group on Town Centres to suggest the proposed cap on charity shops has come as a surprise to interested parties such as the charity retail association.
It follows the appointment of Portas by Prime Minister David Cameron to lead an independent review into the future of the high street and she is expected to present her findings to government by the end of the year.
Wendy Mitchell, Head of Policy & Public Affairs at the Charity Retail Association, said: "The problems on the high street are nothing to do with charity shops. In fact, charity shops are often occupying premises which would otherwise be empty. So any cap on the number of charity shops is likely to increase the number of empty shop fronts."
Reports of the proposal also come after 'The good, the bad and the (very) ugly' annual survey, produced by the Local Data Company, found Sevenoaks shopping centre had a 95% occupancy rate, the highest in Britain for a town of its size.
The report, published last month, examines shop vacancy rates in more than 1,000 retail centres between January and June 2011.
It is a welcome boost to town centres traders as in the past Sevenoaks, prior to the Blighs shopping centre, had been criticised for being all charity shops and estate agents.
There are currently only a few empty shops but there is plenty of empty office space – see pictures on the Sevenoaks photo gallery by clicking here.
What do you think? Are there too many charity shops in the town centre or are they a welcome addition to the Sevenoaks shopping experience? Please comment below.
Comments
by Avarant
Tuesday, November 01 2011, 11:09AM
“I remember the days when all there seemed to be was charity shops in Sevenoaks. But they are not so obvious now as a lot of the empty shops have filled up.
I would prefer to have them than empty shops although some of these charity stores have gone so upmarket they don't have a charity feel about them anymore and they have prices to match. I actually prefer the ones you can sort of rummage round in and find a bargain but then I suppose the traders around them would argue they bring the look of the area down. But let them stay is what I say.”