Insights Hub

PRESS RELEASE: The gap between store openings and closures narrows to its smallest since 2016

  Contact name: Sarah Phillips, Senior Manager, Marketing & PR Organisation: The Local Data Company Phone number: 07889591487 Email: press@localdatacompany.com The gap between store openings and closures narrows to its smallest since 2016 A ...

6 min Read March 15, 2023

Out now: our 2022 GB retail and leisure market analysis

Our latest Local Data Company retail and leisure trends report, covering the GB market over 2022, releases today. Key findings include:

2 min Read March 14, 2023

Practical and profitable: the appeal of retail outlets

Retail outlets in the UK have continued to perform well, bouncing back from the pandemic to welcome international and domestic shoppers once again. In this article, we explore the appeal of outlets as a location for occupiers and consumers alike, ...

3 min Read March 8, 2023

Mind the gap: Britain’s transport hubs in the post-COVID climate

Estimates of train station usage from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) show notable post-pandemic recovery: from April 2021 to March 2022, 24 train stations in Britain saw over 10 million entries and exits each. Only 5 stations saw these numbers ...

4 min Read February 22, 2023

Fewer vacant stores by end of 2022: BRC - LDC Vacancy Monitor, Q4 2022

LDC Press Office Sarah Phillips T: 07889 591 487 E: sarah@localdatacompany.com

3 min Read January 27, 2023

The importance of high quality data

The importance of a data-driven approach is well-publicised: there is no better way to ensure your business is responding to your market as directly and accurately as possible, saving time and resource and allowing you to focus on growth. Not all ...

3 min Read January 17, 2023

The Debenhams estate: where are we now?

December 2022 marks two years since all Debenhams stores were set to close (with some reopening briefly to clear stock following the third lockdown). While the brand has continued to trade online following its acquisition by Boohoo, it left behind ...

3 min Read January 10, 2023

A year on the high street: 2022

As another eventful year draws to a close, we review some of the biggest retail, leisure and property news stories of 2022, including our own insights on key trends and events across the market.

6 min Read December 13, 2022

The impact of home working on city centres

Office workers formed an integral part of pre-COVID city centre economies: the reliable stream of Monday-to-Friday trade was a safe bet for the right brands. Coffee chains, quick-service lunch spots and corner shops could bank on high foot traffic, ...

5 min Read November 16, 2022

How our integrated housing growth data supports stronger strategy

Our clients build successful strategies not only from an in-depth knowledge of the current landscape but also from anticipating how that landscape is likely to change. Understanding the latest housing and population trends helps to reveal areas of ...

7 min Read November 9, 2022

Rates rise puts shops at risk: BRC - Local Data Company Vacancy Monitor, Q3 2022

In the third quarter of 2022, the overall GB vacancy rate decreased to 13.9%, which was 0.1 percentage points better than Q2 and 0.6 percentage points better than the same period last year. This was the fourth consecutive quarter of falling vacancy ...

7 min Read October 28, 2022

H1 2022 Retail & Leisure Trends: Public Sector

  Please complete the below form to access the H1 2022 Retail & Leisure Trends Public Sector presentation.   Following the release of our H1 2022 retail and leisure trends report, LDC Business Development Manager Katie Girdwood and Head of ...

1 min Read October 12, 2022

Profitability, people and the planet: a roundup of LDC's 26th Retail & Leisure Trends Summit

The Local Data Company's 26th Retail & Leisure Trends Summit marked our first in-person event since 2019, hosted in partnership with NatWest at their London Bishopsgate Conference Centre on the 22nd September.

2 min Read September 27, 2022

Out now: our H1 2022 analysis on the GB retail and leisure market

The latest Local Data Company retail and leisure trends report, covering market activity over the first half of 2022, is out today. Key findings include:

2 min Read September 22, 2022

PRESS RELEASE: The GB retail and leisure market stabilises in advance of a tough winter ahead for retailers and consumers

Contact name: Lucy Stainton, LDC Commercial Director Organisation: The Local Data Company Phone number: 07889591487 Email: press@localdatacompany.com   The GB retail and leisure market stabilises in advance of a tough winter ahead for retailers and ...

6 min Read September 22, 2022

26th Retail and Leisure Trends Summit: An interview with NatWest

Ahead of our 26th Retail & Leisure Trends Summit, we caught up with David Scott, National Head for the NatWest Group Leisure and Retail sectors. We are proud to be hosted by NatWest for this in-person event in September 2022. The sectors David ...

4 min Read August 25, 2022

Landsec: Using real-time data to understand the current market and support agile asset strategy

As one of the UK’s leading commercial property development and investment companies, Landsec creates places that make a lasting positive contribution to our communities and our planet. Their portfolio spans 24 million sq. ft of retail, leisure, ...

3 min Read July 28, 2022

Lambeth Council: Leading the way with an intelligence-based approach to place management and covid recovery

Lambeth Council started working with the Local Data Company in 2020 as part of its focus on an intelligence-based approach to place management as part of their emergency response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This involved utilising Local Data Company’s ...

2 min Read July 27, 2022

In and out of a pandemic: the GB leisure industry, 2019-2022

The hospitality sector bore the brunt of lockdown: restrictions on table sizes, social distancing rules, cancelled sports and entertainment events and a severe reduction in international tourism threatened its survival. However, our data shows that ...

4 min Read July 12, 2022

Five years on the high street: 2016- 2021

0 min Read July 5, 2022

Local Data Company Celebrates 19th Birthday

As the Local Data Company celebrates its 19th birthday, our founder and CEO, Barnaby Oswald, shares his thoughts.

1 min Read July 4, 2022

Commercial property trends in review: H1 2022

Although the retail sector began to see signs of post-COVID recovery by the end of 2021, we remained cautious of further uncertainty. As we reach the mid-point of 2022, economic and political headwinds have compounded the challenges for occupiers, ...

3 min Read June 9, 2022

Out now: LDC's latest analysis on 2021

LDC's latest report is out today and provides an update on the impact of market activity across 2021. Key findings from this report include:

2 min Read March 17, 2022

The road to retail recovery: are we there yet? Webinar

1 min Read February 17, 2022

Too Good To Go: Understanding the market to inform data-driven strategy for an expanding business

Too Good To Go is a company working to fight food waste. They partner with food businesses across sectors, including restaurants, bakeries and convenience stores, to offer surplus food at a fraction of the price. Users of the Too Good To Go app can ...

3 min Read December 14, 2021

GB cities most impacted by the 10pm curfew

0 min Read November 9, 2021

GB town recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Mother's Day gifts

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Boozy Britain: the best cities to go out-out

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure trends FY 2019

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure trends H1 2019

For more information on how the market changed over H1 2019, download the full report for free here.

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Do we have too much retail stock?

0 min Read November 9, 2021

How did the physical retail and leisure landscape change over 2018?

*Multiples include all brands with five or more units nationally.

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure trends H1 2018

Last month, we released a report looking at key trends across the retail and leisure landscape for the first six months of this year. For those that didn't have time to read the full report, we have produced an infographic of the key details you ...

0 min Read November 9, 2021

The fashion report- 2018

Last month, we released a report detailing the long-term and short-term trends across the fashion landscape in the UK. For those that didn't have time to read the full report, we have produced an infographic of the key details you need to know from ...

0 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure trends 2017/2018

"It has been widely acknowledged that UK retail is going through a turbulent period, with consumer fundamentals such as consumer confidence decreasing and disposable income stable but slower than inflation in 2017. The labour market remained robust ...

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Supermarkets, discounters and convenience stores 2012-2017

"Across GB the state of the grocery market is one of a changing landscape, with the previously clear divisions between supermarkets, convenience stores and discounters becoming blurred. Convenience stores are becoming more and more like ...

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Retailing in Wales' towns and cities

The latest report by the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research, Data and Methods (WISERD) and LDC looks at the general health and emerging trends in retail across Welsh towns and cities in 2017. The report is presented in four sections ...

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Retailing in Scotland's largest towns and cities

The latest report by the Institute for Retail Studies - University of Stirling and LDC looks at the latest retail health and trends across Scotland's towns and cities. The report is presented in three sections focusing in turn on retail premises, ...

1 min Read November 9, 2021

24th Retail and Leisure Trends Summit

Our next summit, 'The road to retail recovery: are we there yet?' features our full year 2021 analysis and will take place on Thursday the 17th of March at 3pm. Find out more and register at ...

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Maximise the impact of funding and measurement for councils and BIDs

1 min Read November 9, 2021

23rd Retail & Leisure Trends Summit FY 2020

1 min Read November 9, 2021

22nd Retail & Leisure Trends Summit H1 2020

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Resilience in the retail and leisure market- 2020

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure market trends for landlords, investors and commercial agents- FY 2019

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure market trends for councils, BIDs and government- FY 2019

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & leisure market trends for retail and leisure occupiers and consultants- FY 2019

1 min Read November 9, 2021

Retail & Leisure Summit H1 2019

1 min Read November 9, 2021

British Land: Using LDC data to support strong and strategic decision making during the COVID-19 pandemic

British Land is one of the UK’s leading property companies. Their mission is to create places people prefer, delivering the best, most sustainable places for their customers and communities.

2 min Read November 2, 2021

Fable Data: How an alt data provider matches transaction strings to merchants using LDC data

Fable Data is an Alt data provider which uses anonymised transaction data from banks, credit card providers and fintech companies to deliver insight used by investors for decision making and strategic planning. Their mission is to aggregate ...

2 min Read October 20, 2021

VPZ: Streamlining the site acquisition process through detailed, consistently available location data

VPZ is an e-cigarette store with a difference. One of the key objectives for the brand is to create a warm, welcoming and attractive place for consumers to visit for advice, consultation and education on the health benefits of vaping when compared ...

3 min Read October 20, 2021

Manchester City Council: Using LDC data to support growth and regeneration strategy for the city

Manchester City Council’s Growth and Regeneration team is focused on supporting sustainable growth across mixed use commercial, residential, tourism and leisure development. The main objective for the team is to ensure that Manchester continues to ...

2 min Read October 20, 2021

InLinkUK: Using LDC data to understand hyper-local economies to prioritise locations

InLinkUK is a high-street digitisation project launched through a collaboration between leading out-of-home media company, Primesight, technology company, Intersection and telecoms giant, BT. The InLinkUK project will see over 1,000 redundant ...

3 min Read October 20, 2021

NoteMachine: Using LDC insights to drive profitable ATM portfolio expansion

NoteMachine is one of Europe’s leading ATM businesses which provides fully managed free-to-use cash machines to retailers and financial institutions. NoteMachine currently operates over 10,500 cash machines across the UK and processes around 1 ...

3 min Read October 20, 2021

LDC's latest report on H1 2021 is available now!

LDC's latest bi-annual report is out today and provides an update on the impact of market activity across the first six months of this year.  Key findings from this report include:

2 min Read September 16, 2021

Key findings from our retail and leisure analysis on 2020

Our latest report on retail and leisure market trends across 2020 is out now and available to download for free. 2020 was a year like no other, defined by one word - COVID-19.

2 min Read March 24, 2021

LDC's H1 2020 Retail and Leisure market analysis is out now!

Our latest analysis on trends across the first (exceptionally challenging) half of 2020 is out now and available to download for free.

1 min Read November 4, 2020