UK Discount Deals

I've noticed some significant changes in UK retailing in recent years. I'm sure that you're aware of plenty of them too, but there's no doubt that there has been a real transformation and we can sometimes take such changes for granted.

I thought it might be nice to re-visit some changes and look at the impacts. Let's begin by considering the changing face of the UK high street.

This is an area where the pace of change has actually been quite rapid. It wasn't so long ago that you're local high street may have been a real hub for the local community, but is it still the case? Many supermarkets, for instance, have looked to re-located to out-of-town, or edge-of-town locations. They've often taken a lot of shoppers with them, leaving the high street in a sorry state. But it's not just been supermarkets who have been making such moves - we all tend to think of such locations as being where we'll find DIY superstores, furniture showrooms, drive-through fast food restaurants and other establishments.

Changes in the nature of the high street also reflect the speed of growth of certain retailers too - the increase in size of the likes of Tesco, Ikea and McDonalds have all had an impact. Sometimes that impact doesn't appear so obvious in relation to the high street, but if we look closely enough then we can see that it's there.

How about shopping centres? Many have cropped up in city centre locations, providing an all-weather shopping experience, but often leaving less stores on the high street. Some would also suggest that they've had a negative impact, with many shopping centres looking similar and containing a similar array of stores. Have our choices been restricted as a result of this "progress"?