Author: Leigh Sparks
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January 2022 – removal of some redundant pages, reordering of some material, the addition of some new pages (under Commentaries), and some changes to some of the text throughout
January 2022 – annual rollover of pages completed (Media and Journal Articles)
December 2021 – Journal Articles page updated with editorial from IRRDCR
Top Posts & Pages
- NPF4 - on the evidence trail
- Retail Branding: it's not (just) private label
- Retail Impact Assessments: Time for a Rethink?
- Grocery Market Shares in the UK 2020
- Logistics and Retail Management 5th Edition
- "If Not Now, When?" - the Social Renewal Advisory Board Report
- National Planning Framework 4 - the consultation
- Retail Disruptors - the spectacular rise and impact of the hard discounters
- London's Welsh Dairies: The Welsh Milk Trade
- Axe Stores (this is a description not an instruction)
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Category Archives: Stirling
NPF4 – on the evidence trail
Yesterday I gave evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee on the Scottish Government’s draft National Planning Framework 4. It was an interesting experience and lasted 90 minutes or so with a panel of myself, Professor … Continue reading
Posted in 20 Minute Neighbourhood, City Centres, Climate Emergency, Community, Community Assets, Community Development, Community Ownership, community wealth building, Government, Healthy Living, Heritage, Land Use Planning, Local Authorities, New Future for Scotland's Towns, NPF4, Place Principle, Places, Planning, Public Policy, Retail Impact Assessments, Retail Planning, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Scottish Government, Stirling, Stirling Council, Town Centre Action Plan, town centre first, Town Centre Living, Town Centre Review, Town Centres, Towns, Uncategorized
Tagged 20 minute, A New Future for Scotland's Towns, Climate Emergency, Community, community wealth building, Housing, Land Use Planning, NPF4, Place Principle, Planners, Planning, Regualation, Retail Impact Assessments, Scotland's Towns, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Scottish Government, Stirling, Stirling Council, Town Centres
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Locavore’s Bigger Plan
I am not sure when I first became aware of Locavore. It certainly was before they launched their Big Plan in 2015. I had a watching interest in the development of social and more sustainable retail food stores and supermarkets, … Continue reading
Posted in Community, Community Interest Company, Consumer Lifestyle, Crowdfunding, Employment practices, Ethics, Food, Food Retailing, Glasgow, Independents, Local Retailers, Localisation, Locavore, Lockdown, organic, Pandemic, Producers, Retail innovation, Retail leadership, Retailing, Scotland, Scotland Food and Drink, Scotland Loves Local, Scottish Local Retailer, Scottish Retailing, Social Change, Stirling, Supermarket, Suppliers, Supply Chains, Sustainability, Sustainable Development, Uncategorized, Veg Boxes, Wages, Waste, Wholesaling
Tagged Carbon negative, Community Interest Company, Glasgow, Local, Local suppliers, Locavore, organic, Retail, Shops, Social impact, Social Supermarkets, Supply chains, Sustainability, Veg Boxes, Waste Reduction
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Ten years on stirlingretail.com
Ten years ago today (6th April 2011) I put up my very first post on this blog. My intention was really two fold. First I wanted to have a place to collect and publicise retail things so as to avoid … Continue reading
Posted in Academics, Consumer Change, Convenience, Convenience stores, High Streets, Internet, Internet shopping, Local Retailers, Market Shares, Mary Portas, Multichannel, Online Retailing, Red Tape, Regulation, Retail Change, Retail Sales, Scotland, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Scottish Government, Scottish Grocers Federation, Scottish Retail Consortium, Scottish Retail Sales, Shopfronts, Stirling, Tesco, Town Centres, Towns, Uncategorized, Waitrose
Tagged British Retail Consortium, Convenience Retailing, High Streets, Historic Shops, Retail Sales, Retailing, Scotland, Stirling, Tesco, Town Centres, University of Stirling, Waitrose
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An (Un)Happy Anniversary
On the 16th March 2020 I started working from home. There had been an odd set of circumstances in the run-up to this date. We’d come back from South Africa in late January and I’d felt a little unwell; something … Continue reading
Posted in Amazon, Books, Cardiff, Christmas, Consumer Change, Consumer Lifestyle, Consumers, Covid19, Farmers Markets, Food, Food and Beverage, Food Retailing, Home Delivery, Independents, Internet shopping, Local Retailers, Localisation, Lockdown, Online Retailing, Pandemic, Producers, Products, Retail Change, Retailers, Retailing, Scotland Food and Drink, Scottish Retailing, Small Shops, Stirling, Uncategorized, Wholesaling
Tagged Amazon, Covid-19, Home Delivery, Indepedendents, internet retailing, Local Retailing, Lockdown, Pandemic, Retailing, Specialist retailers
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Commuting and Retailing in Town Centres
It is not an unusual state of mind these days, but I am puzzled over a couple of things that have been the topic of discussions (or in the first case the media as well) I have been in over … Continue reading
Posted in Cities, Commuting, Decentralisation, Government, Localisation, Places, Reinvention, Retail Parks, Retailers, Retailing, Shopping, Stirling, Sustainability, Town Centres, Towns
Tagged Cities, Co-working spaces, Coffee Shops, Commuting, Decentralisation, Offices, Retailing, Town Centres, towns
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Place Based Loyalty
We have a new academic paper out – on place marketing and place based loyalty schemes (details at end of blog) – and in addition to wanting to say something about it, I felt the time was ripe for setting … Continue reading
Posted in Bids Scotland, Data, Local Multiplier, Local Retailers, Localisation, Perth, Places, Retailers, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Stirling, Uncategorized, University of Stirling, Urban
Tagged Bids Scotland, Data, Gift cards, Local Retailers, Perth, Place loyalty, Place marketing, Research, Stirling, University of Stirling
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Efficiency or Idiocy?
For some time it has been apparent that Dave Lewis has been determined to address the ‘bloat’ in Tesco and cut back on all sorts of things. In the big picture out have gone most of the diversifications of the … Continue reading
Posted in Boots, Competition, Consumer Change, Consumers, Costs, Customer Service, distribution, Food Retailing, Local Retailers, Pharmacy, Plastic Bags, Retailers, Self-checkout, Stirling, Tax, Tesco, Uncategorized
Tagged Boots, Butchers, Consumers, Cost-cutting, distribution, Efficiency, Fishmongers, independents, Plastic, Prescriptions, Self-checkout, Service, Tax, Tesco
8 Comments
Orc-(k)nee
There has been a lot of doom and gloom around in the last few weeks about the state of retail and high streets across the country. There is clearly a new changed set of circumstances around consumer behaviours and the … Continue reading
Posted in Community, Cooperative Group, Creative Places, Environmental Quality, Food Tourism, Heritage, High Streets, Independents, Lidl, Orkney, Personal, Places, Pound Shops, Poundland, Public Realm, Retail History, Scotland's Islands, Seafood, Small Shops, Small Towns, Stirling, Tourism, Town Centres, Towns, Understanding Scottish Places, Urban History
Tagged History, Knee Caps, Local retail, Orkney, Tourism
6 Comments
Talking Shops at The Engine Shed
On a number of occasions this blog has covered aspects of the past and in particular ghostsigns and historic shops and shopfronts. Across Scotland (and beyond) there is an enduring fascination for, and concern with, our retail history. I was … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, BHS, Buildings, Falkirk, Ghost Signs, High Streets, Historic Shops, History, Retail History, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Shopfronts, Signage, Stirling, Streets, Streetscapes, Urban History, Woolworths
Tagged Architecture, BHS Mural Hull, Co-operatives, Conservation, Engine Shed, History, Murals, Retail History, Shopfronts, Shops, Stirling, Streets, Streetscapes, Woolworths
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