The latest published footfall figures from the British Retail Consortium are for February 2016. In Wales, high street footfall in February was 8.8 per cent lower than in the previous year. That's a frightening statistic. High street footfall in Wales is generally down for very month, year on year. It prompted the British Retail Gazette, in August 2015, to question whether the death of the High Street was in sight.
But what of Rhuthun/Ruthin? Has anyone noticed the grey box placed on St Peter's Square, near Wetherspoon's and the Myddleton? This measures footfall in town. There are similar boxes located in all of Denbighshire's town centres. They've all been up since May 2015, so there are no February comparisons. But there is a figure for June 2016 against June 2015. And they're quite revealing.
All such figures should be treated with caution. They nevertheless lend supporting evidence to what is happening on local high streets. In Denbighshire, on average, town centre footfall comparing June 2016 with 2015 has dropped by 11½ per cent, which is 2.7 per cent worse than the *February* year on year Welsh average. Although there are two exceptions, every town in Denbighshire has seen year on year footfall reduce by over 10 per cent. One exception is Llanelwy/St Asaph, showing a one per cent drop in footfall.
And the other is Rhuthun. We should perhaps be content that in spite of far higher parking charge increases here than elsewhere in Denbighshire, Rhuthun's fall is just four per cent. Although in the wrong direction, in the context of every other town and the Welsh average, this seems like something of an achievement.
Why so in Rhuthun? One reason must surely be the counter's location. It's close to Wetherspoon's and the popular pub chain may therefore have distorted the figures: general footfall away from Wetherspoon's might actually have been closer to 10 per cent. On the other hand, this may actually demonstrate that Wetherspoon's is having an impact on the town, by increasing visitors to it.
The trick now is to reverse the trend. We all have our part to play.That does seem something of an impossible task, given the slow but steady balancing increases in online sales. Online shopping has not reached maturity. And, for those who still buy in physical space (a clunky phrase now used to refer to anywhere other than online shopping), their habits have changed: increasingly, people research online and then swoop in for a specific purchase rather than make exploratory missions that increase footfall and generate opportunistic sales.
Relative footfall at June 2016 compared to June 2015, where June 2015 = 100. Note the consistent pattern, save for Rhuthun & Llanelwy
And the other is Rhuthun. We should perhaps be content that in spite of far higher parking charge increases here than elsewhere in Denbighshire, Rhuthun's fall is just four per cent. Although in the wrong direction, in the context of every other town and the Welsh average, this seems like something of an achievement.
Why so in Rhuthun? One reason must surely be the counter's location. It's close to Wetherspoon's and the popular pub chain may therefore have distorted the figures: general footfall away from Wetherspoon's might actually have been closer to 10 per cent. On the other hand, this may actually demonstrate that Wetherspoon's is having an impact on the town, by increasing visitors to it.
The trick now is to reverse the trend. We all have our part to play.That does seem something of an impossible task, given the slow but steady balancing increases in online sales. Online shopping has not reached maturity. And, for those who still buy in physical space (a clunky phrase now used to refer to anywhere other than online shopping), their habits have changed: increasingly, people research online and then swoop in for a specific purchase rather than make exploratory missions that increase footfall and generate opportunistic sales.