Investment is the key to success

Last week, global information company Experian revealed that Burnley had leapfrogged Blackburn in the battle of the High Streets.

So just what is responsible for the reversal of fortunes? Why has the self-styled capital of East Lancashire fallen behind its smaller neighbour? More importantly, what is Blackburn planning to do to rejoin the premiership of the retail centres?

Business Editor ANDREW CALVERT met the key players behind the two town centres to find some answers.

Investment is a key factor in the success of a shopping centre -- just as it is in the world of professional football.

In the past 12 months alone, more than £20 million has been spent on retail and leisure facilities to improve Burnley town centre. In Blackburn, since the shopping centre complex was reclad and refurbished five years ago, relatively little has been spent.

The results are plain to see. According to Experian, Blackburn, over the past 12 months, suffered a 20 per cent fall in the number of shops owned by multiple retailers; a 10 per cent increase in the number of vacant shops; and a five per cent drop in the amount of retail floorspace in the town.

In Burnley, there has been a 30 per cent increase in the number of multiple retailers; a 35 per cent rise in retail floorspace and a 30 per cent drop in the number of empty shops.

The Experian town centre rankings are regarded as the most authoritive ranking of retail performance in the UK. Surveyors make an annual visit to more than 1,100 shopping locations and towns are given a 'vitality' score based on pre-determined criteria.

The biggest factor, accounting for 40 per cent of the ranking, is the number of multiple retail outlets such as Boots, Dixons and Next. Other factors include the number of non-retail outlets in a town centre, the amount of vacant floorspace and the number of big name stores.

London's West End was top of the national league with a vitality score of 470. Burnley achieved a score of 145 points to clinch 149th place, up from 190th the previous year. Blackburn slipped 30 places to 151st with a score of 144 points.

Elsewhere in the North West, Manchester and Liverpool were in sixth and seventh places with respective scores of 282 and 277. The Trafford Centre was 40th (217 points), Bolton 45th (210), Preston 71st (184), Bury 73rd (180) and Blackpool 99th (166). Retail specialist Richard Bailey, of Experian, said Burnley was the most improved shopping centre in the North West with an 18 per cent rise in ranking. Only St Helens and Southport experienced a bigger drop than Blackburn's five per cent.

"There has been significant development in Burnley which is the biggest factor in the success of its town centre," he said. "When you have two shopping centres close to one another and one is improved, you will get retailers jumping ship and moving to newer facilities. However, Burnley's gain is not just at Blackburn's expense. When a town centre is improved, you see retailers moving in for the first time.

"An interesting factor in East Lancashire is that when you have multiple retailers with outlets in both towns, they tend to have a larger one in Burnley." Burnley Council bosses insisted there was no rivalry with Blackburn.

Council leader Stuart Caddy said Burnley was now aiming to join the country's elite top 100 retail centres.

And he revealed it was the council's strategy of working with the private sector that had helped attract the investment underpinning the town's commercial success.

"We have worked dammed hard on the regeneration of Burnley town centre and it is still at the top of our agenda at all times, " said Coun Caddy. "Burnley's aim now is to get into the top 100.

Working in partnership with the private sector has brought over £20 million into the shopping centre. We cannot stand still and we shall continue to improve the shopping centre."

One of Coun Caddy's next priorities is to encourage a cafe culture where people can sit outside all year round. " In our big cities, people don't just rush home after work," he explained. "They go to relax and socialise, have a meal with friends and then maybe go to the cinema. That is the type of clientele we want to attract to make our town centre a more vibrant place."

Burnley town centre manager Lisa Durkin said the investment by Great Portland Estates at Pendle House and Curzon Square had been a significant factor in improving fortunes.

A total of 30 new stores had been attracted to the town last year, 10 of them multiple retailers and 20 independent operators which added to the diversity of the shopping centre.

"When people come to Burnley town centre, they are pleasantly surprised," she said.

"It is not enclosed like Blackburn's and it offers an attractive environment with a nice feel to it. "

She stressed that Burnley was not in competition with Blackburn. "Our catchment area covers Burnley, Padiham, Pendle, Rawtenstall, Keighley and Todmorden," she said. "Surveys show we have very few shoppers from Blackburn, Hyndburn or the Ribble Valley." Lisa Durkin is confident that Burnley will see further improvements to its town centre.

Construction work will be starting on a new bus interchange this summer and Tesco has applied for permission to open a new store close to it.

"We need to improve the range and the quality of our shops," she added. "There is a demographic perception that Burnley does not have enough ABC shoppers.

"We need to convince better quality retailers to come to the town." BLACKBURN with Darwen Council bosses refuse to accept that Burnley has a better town centre, but they are treating the Experian report as a "wake-up call".

And in answer to criticism that the council has failed to invest in the town centre, they have unveiled a £50 million regeneration package they claim will bring about a massive transformation. Initiatives scheduled to begin this year include:

An £18 million retail and leisure development between the railway station and Darwen Street Bridge. Peel Holdings are close to finalising the deal for two large retail units for office staionery company Staples and discount giant Matalan. In the second phase of the development, the council is hoping to attract a multiplex cinema.

A £4.3 million redevelopment of Broseley House to attract up to 1,000 white collar workers.

A £11 million redevelopment of Church Street into a pedestrian zone with al fresco dining terraces.

A £2 million refurbishment of the frontage of the railway station as a mixed development featuring shops, offices and an up-market wine bar.

The £2 million development of the Pavilion buildings on Church Street. TV celebrity chef Nigel Haworth from Northcote Manor in Langho has been linked with the scheme.

The £3.6 million Foyer project in King Street to create a centre for homeless young people.

A £2 million extension to Barbara Castle Way which is scheduled to commence this summer.

Councillor Ashley Whalley, executive member for regeneration, conceded that the Experian report had highlighted the need for the continued regeneration of the town centre.

"Those cynics who said there was no need for investment in regeneration ought to read this league table very carefully," he said. "When the regeneration programme is completed in around 18 months time, you will see a very different town centre that can compete with other towns in the North West. "

Arnold Wilcock-Wood, Blackburn's Town Centre Manager with responsibility for the shopping precinct, said three new new shops had opened since Christmas and three more stores were also scheduled to open by Easter.

He said: "If you take Lord Square out of the equation, there will be just two vacant units which is excellent for a shopping centre the size of Blackburn's.

Councillor Whalley admits that the redevelopment of the shabby, Lord Square remains the town's most intractable problems. With around half the shops lying empty, cracked and missing tiles on walls surrounding the square, the council believes Lord Square was the single biggest factor leading to Blackburn's fall in the league table.

"Lord Square is owned by Standard Life and we have been urging the company to breathe new life into that part of town, " said Councillor Whalley. "We want them to make a major investment in the site that will bring new high quality shops."

Councillor Whalley believes that the redevelopment of Church Street will act as a catalyst for the revamp of Lord Square.

Standard Life has denied being responsible for Blackburn's failing fortunes. Mike Hannigan, retail investment director, said: "You cannot just focus on Lord Square being the cause of the problem. The regeneration of Lord Square will cost a considerable amount of money and the right option has not yet presented itself. "

Blackburn's local authority leaders do not see Burnley as competition and feel the threat to its shopping centre comes from Bolton and Preston. "The facts clearly show that Blackburn is a more significant figure than Burnley, " added Councillor Whalley.

"We are the primary shopping and leisure centre in East Lancashire, but we must move forward."