THE vast majority of Scots would be sad to see the death of the UK high street.
Nearly four-fifths (77 per cent) of Scots who visited their local high street in the last year would be unhappy if the option of shopping there was taken away, a survey has found.
More than one in four (26%) said they will always want to shop on their local high street and half said they were unlikely to stop visiting in the next year.
But around two-thirds (66%) feel the high street does not have everything they need for their local shop, the survey of more than 2,000 adults commissioned by Accenture found. More than half (56%) said the high street was no longer relevant and needs to change.
Asked if a store on the high street which was part of their regular shopping routine was to close, 60% said they would shop online instead; nearly one in three said they would either switch to another high-street brand (32%) or drive to find the same shop somewhere else (32%).
Nearly three in 10 (28%) said they could stop shopping in the high street in the next five years, increasing to more than one-third (37%) in the next 10 years.
Kelly Askew, retail strategy and consulting lead at Accenture, said: “The future of the high street has been in question in recent years, but for now, stores are clearly still in fashion. Many retailers are still placing their bets on bricks-and-mortar, but there are warnings that the high street is in need of a reinvention if it’s to survive.
“At a time when shoppers are being even more selective about where and how they spend their cash, the future of the UK high street lies in its relevance and ability to meet local needs. For businesses, this means a focus on affordability, customer experience, and tailoring their offer to local demand.
“Technologies play an important role here – whether that’s using data analytics to determine the store layout and what they stock or investing in AI and automation to enhance the store experience whilst enabling staff to be more efficient.”
In other findings, food shopping was highlighted as the most common use for the high street (79%), followed by eating and drinking (53%).
Nearly half (46%) said they would like to see more food shops on their high street, while a similar percentage said that they would like to see more high street banks and post offices (50%), clothes shops (58%) and general retail stores (65%). These were followed by office spaces (22%) and beauty services (34%).
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