Belfast: “Collaboration could improve city’s retail offering”
Northern Ireland's largest commercial property agency, Lambert Smith Hampton, has published a new report outlining what it believes will be the drivers of Belfast's retail growth in the coming years.
Print22 February 2017
Belfast: An Evolution of the Retail Landscape is the title of a report published this week by Lambert Hampton Smith, Northern Ireland’s largest commercial property agency. In it, the company states that Belfast has made enormous progress as a destination since the days of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, but that further “political buy-in” will be needed if it wants to become one of the UK’s ten most popular retail destinations.
The report tracks the changing face of the retail sector in Northern Ireland’s capital from the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in April of 1998 to the present day. It charts the major developments in the city centre in the past 20 years, including the construction of Victoria Square, the arrival of new global brands and the improved tourism offer and new attractions such as Titanic Belfast.
Criona Collins, Director of Retail at Lambert Smith Hampton said the report shows how far Belfast has come in terms of its retail offering since 1998. “We should celebrate the success that Belfast has had with an influx of new brands over the past 18 months,” said Collins.
“But,” she added, “there is a real and pressing need for a strategy if we are to maintain this progress in Belfast. We still have some way to go before the city will be known as a retail destination across Europe. We are pleased that this is now considered a priority by Belfast City Council.”
A recent Javelin report placed Belfast 15th out of 20 top UK shopping destinations. Lambert Smith Hampton said that given the city’s size, to break into the top ten would take time, but there is an opportunity to drive the city up the rankings in the next decade.
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