Experts warn 64 UK high street shops a day will shut down this year

Shoppers on Oxford Street, London, during the Boxing Day sales. Photo: Isabel Infantes/EMPICS Entertainment

The UK is set to lose more than 60 shops a day in 2019, property experts have warned in a bleak report on the future of the high street.

The Altus Group said more than 175,000 jobs and 23,000 stores could be axed as bricks-and-mortar stores continue to struggle with the rise of online shopping and lower consumer confidence.

The property consultancy also predicted a 15.9% slide in the value of retail property in 2019, with most major property owners surveyed highlighting the disruption caused by online rivals like Amazon.

Guillaume Fiastre, managing director of the Altus Grup, said companies had to radically rethink their stores, using technology and staff interaction tailored to individual customers’ needs.

“The most successful retailers — the survivors — are learning to draw in their customers with the promise of a personalised experience,” he said.

READ MORE: Five ways to save the high street before it’s too late

The latest warning is just one of a wave of negative signs for British retail in recent weeks, and it comes as:

• William Hill (WMH.L) stocks slid more than 4% this morning after it warned its annual profits were likely to be lower than last year. The betting giant pledged to remodel its retail arm and become a “digitally-led international business,” continuing its focus on US expansion.
  

• Profit warnings by top UK retailers last year hit their highest level since the global financial crisis, an analysis by accountancy firm EY shows. 2018 saw 36 profit warnings from retailers on the FTSE index — a 50% rise on the previous year.

• Official figures show consumers spent less than expected in the immediate run-up to Christmas, despite heavy discounting by stores. Sales were down 0.9% in December compared to the previous year in what the British Retail Consortium called the industry’s worst Christmas for a decade.

• One in five UK stores owned by the retail tycoon Sir Philip Green is reported to have closed over the past two years alone, according to the Sunday Telegraph. Dorothy Perkins, Evans, Wallis, Burton and Topshop were among the brands shutting branches.

• A poll by job search engine Adzuna suggested retail staff were the unhappiest about their salaries of any workers in the UK, according to HR Review.