This page lists a selection of my presentations since early 2012, with a focus on Scotland and town centres
2023
Scotland’s Approach to Towns and Town Centres. Presentation to a Regional Studies Association and Institute of Place Management webinar, 4th October.
Scotland’s High Streets: the Bigger Picture, presentation to the Heritage Trust Network Scottish event on Re-store, re-use, regenerate: rethinking town centres, Stirling, 5th September (overheads below)
Towns, High Streets, Resilience and Place Governance, Keynote presentation to the Institute of Place management Annual Conference, Manchester, 20th April (see here for details and overheads)
Improvement Districts Reception, Scottish Parliament, Closing Remarks, 28th February
Retailing: Changes and Challenges. Online presentation to D Y Patil University, Mumbai, India, 3rd February
Retailing and Ecommerce – Empowerment of Women and Girls, Panel presentation and discussion at webinar hosted by RSA Scotland, 18th January (summary here)
2022
EDAS Talking Ideas Podcast, 16th December, 20 minutes on place, place-making, towns and retailing
“This House Regrets the Death of the High Street”, Debate at St Andrews Union Debating Society, 10th November
Retailing, towns and healthy ageing, Stirling, 27th October (details and presentation here)
Town Centre Action Plan 2 Launch, Galashiels, 31st May (You Tube Livestream here)
Town Centres and Housing, Presentation and Panel Discussion, Scotland Policy Conferences on Next Steps for Housing Policy in Scotland, 10th May
Oral Evidence to the Economy and Fair Work Committee inquiry into Town Centres and Retail, 30th March 2022 (summary of opening remarks here)
Predicting the Post-Covid Retail Landscape, Presnetation to the Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group on Local Convenience Stores, 16th March. Details and overgherads here.
Oral Evidence to the Local Government, Housing and PlLanning Committee inquiry into NPF4, 25th January 2022 (details here)
Retailing and Towns in Scotland: the future. Presentation to the South Ayrshire Council Community Wealth Building and Economic Development Teams, 18th January.
2021
Greater, greener and fairer: A New Future for Scotland’s Towns. Presentation at Scotland’s Towns Conference, 22-26th November (my presentation 23rd November).
Panel discussion on Reimagining Places – creating a happy high street for all. Healthy Ageing Conference 2021 UKRI and Healthy Ageing Better, 16th November
Changing Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to the Green Action Trust Event on Ensuring a Legacy from COP26 across Scotland, 26th October (speech is available here)
Scotland’s Recovery: A Turning or Tipping Point for Towns, Presentation to Holyrood Events 2nd National Recovery Summit, 12th October (details of presentation and summary of speech available here)
Convenience Stores and the Covid-19 Pandemic, Presentation (in person, no less) to the Annual Conference of the Scottish Grocers Federation, Glasgow, 16th September (see details, presentation and transcript here)
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to Aberdeenshire Council, 29th July
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to West Lothian Council, 5th May
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to Stirling Council Elected Members on Town and City Centre Recovery, 26th April
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to Love Oor Lang Toun 1st Birthday Celebration Event,16th April
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to East Lothian Towns Networking Group, 22nd March
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to Welsh Government Ministerial Town Centre Action Group Meeting, 18th March
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to Scottish Government Ministerial Retail Strategy Steering Group, 4th March
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to RTPI Ireland Webinar on Putting Town Centres First, 23rd February
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to the Scotland’s Towns Partnership Webinar on ” A New Future for Scotland Towns”, 18th February. Overheads and pre-recorded approximate transcript of presentation available here
A New Future for Scotland’s Towns, Presentation to the High Street Task Force Professional, Research and Data Group, 16th February
Town centres in Scotland: context and issues. Presentation to the Dumfires Partnership Action Group webinar, Dynamically Different Dumfries, 2nd February
2020
The Town Centre Action Plan Review, Webinar for Brodies, 16th July 2020
Retailing, Shopping and COVID-19, Webinar for Institute of Place Management, 1st May, 2020
6th February 2020
Chairing and moderating STP, Revo and DWF LLP “The Future of Shopping Centres in Scotland’s Towns.
Panel member of Revo Scotland “Insightful Scotland ’20”
2019
17th April 2019
Thinking the Unthinkable … the future of the town centre and its high street. Presentation to the Dundee Civic Trust. Blog commentary including overheads of the original version of this talk from 2018 are available here.
3rd April 2019
Scotland’s Towns – a decade of learning – presentation at the Scottish Government/ Scotland’s Towns Partnership Town Centre Capital Fund Information Session, COSLA, Edinburgh. See post here.
2018
14th November 2018
Trouble on the High Street – Panel session at the ICAS Insolvency and Restructuring Conference2018, Gleneagles Hotel.
7th November 2018
Thinking the Unthinkable … keynote address at the Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland/Scottish Civic Trust Conference “Destination High Street”, Glasgow. Blog commentary including overheads available here.
2nd July 2018
DIE-ing to contribute: dissemination, impact and expertise, plenary session at the Academy of Marketing Annual Conference, Doctoral Colloquium, Stirling, Overheads here.
27th March 2018
Charity Retail Scotland 2018 – retail change in Scotland. Presentation at the Charity Retailing Conference Scotland, Glasgow. Overheads here..
26th February 2018
Talking Shops – invited presentation at the Talking Shops exhibition launch at The Engine Shed, Stirling – see blog post here
2017
2nd November 2017
Local Impact of Convenience Stores – invited presentation by Leigh Sparks and Dr Maria Rybaczewska to the annual Conference of the Scottish Grocers Federation, Edinburgh. Overheads here.
26th October 2017
Perth’s Fair City – The Future – Invited presentation to the Scottish Civic Trust/Perth Civic Trust “Perth: past, present, future” event. Reflections and overheads here.
10th October 2017
Identifying and Understanding the Factors that can Transform the Retail Environment to Enable Healthier Purchasing by Consumers. Presentation at the Obesity Action Scotland/ Cancer Research UK Fringe Meeting, SNP Annual Confectioner, Glasgow.
15th September 2017
Retail, Consumption and the New Forms of Urban Governance. Key note presentation to the VI International Seminar on City, Retail and Consumption, Lisbon, Portugal. Overheads here. See also blog posts : Tim Out in Lisbon Part One and Two
12th September 2017
Transforming the Retail Environment to Enable Healthier Eating. Presentation to the Cross Party Group on Independent Convenience Stores, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh. See overheads here and blog post here.
17th June 2017
Understanding and Directing Change in Towns and Places. Presentation to Workshop for Perth and Kinross Council/Miconex, Perth.
13th June 2017
The Road to Understanding Scottish Places (USP). Presentation to Carnegie UK Trust/ Welsh Government seminar/workshop on Understanding Welsh Places, Cardiff.
11th May 2017
Collaboration and Research. Invited presentation at the Second Local Data Company Retail Leaders Forum, Oxford.
8th May 2017
Collaborative Doctorates : Scottish and International Perspectives and Opportunities. Invited presentation at the UKCGE Workshop on Collaborative Doctorates, Edinburgh.
2016
10th November 2016
Spatial-structural change and our (retail) sense of place. Invited keynote address at the Nordic Retail and Wholesale Association Conference, Aarhus University.
9th November 2016
Welcome address and reflections, Scotland Towns Conference, Kirkcaldy. Speech available here.
7th May 2016
Approaches to high streets and town centers: Scotland vs England. Presentation at the British Academy of Management Annual Conference, Newcastle, workshop on high streets in transition. Presentation was based on report here.
12th May 2016
Retail and Town Centre Development. Presentation at the RTPI West of Scotland Chapter and RICS Matrix Glasgow & West Scotland Event. Presentation is available here.
15th March 2016
The Changing Retail Scene in Scotland. Presentation at Charity Retail Association Scottish Conference, Glasgow. Presentation is available here.
15th March 2016
Place Matters. Invited presentation at Keep Scotland Beautiful Local Environmental Quality Conference 2016, Glasgow. Presentation is available here.
6th March 2016
A (Retail) Sense of Place. Invited presentation at Co-operatives UK Retail Conference Conference, Stratford upon Avon. Presentation is available here, as is commentary on the presentation.
25th February 2016
Retail Change in the UK.Presentation to Bayfield Training Shopping Centre Investment Programme, Westfield, Stratford.
2015
23rd November 2015
A (Retail) Sense of Place. Invited keynote presentation at Conference on A Sense of Place, hosted by Lund University, Helsingborg Campus. Presentation is available here, and commentary on the presentation is available here.
30th October 2015
The Place of Retailing in Food Choice. Presentation at a SIRE Workshop on “Consumer preferences, perceptions and decision-making”, Stirling Court Hotel, Stirling. Presentation is available here as are commentaries on the workshop, here and here.
29th October 2015
What can we learn from the Discounters? Report on the SGF Study Tour. Presentation to the Annual Conference of the Scottish Grocers Federation, Edinburgh. Overheads are available here. Commentary on the session and the report is available here.
27th October 2015
Understanding Scottish Places. Presentation at the Scotland’s Towns Partnership Roadshow, Kilmarnock. Presentation based on the earlier Galashiels presentation available here.
And the Storify about the Roadshows is available here.
20th October 2015
Understanding Scottish Places. Presentation at the Scotland’s Towns Partnership Roadshow, Edinburgh. Presentation based on the earlier Galashiels presentation available here.
28th September 2015
Understanding Scottish Places. Presentation at the Scotland’s Towns Partnership Roadshow, Inverness. Presentation based on the earlier Galashiels presentation available here.
21st August 2015
Understanding Scottish Places. Presentation at the Federation of Small Business Workshop, Glasgow. Presentation (jointly with Jim Metcalfe, Carnegie UK Trust) based on the earlier Galashiels presentation available here.
18th August 2015
Understanding Scottish Places. Presentation at the Scotland’s Towns Partnership Roadshow, Inverurie. Presentation (jointly with Neil McIlroy, CLES) based on the earlier Galashiels presentation available here.
11th August 2015
Understanding Scottish Places. Presentation at the Scotland’s Towns Partnership Roadshow, Galashiels. Presentation (jointly with Neil McIlroy, CLES and Jim Metcalfe, Carnegie UK Trust) available as a pdf here. See also blog post here.
1st July 2015
The Implications of the Changing Patterns of Retailing. Presentation at the NRPF Seminar on “Rescuing town centres in the light of changing retail trends”. Presentation available as a pdf here. See also blog post here.
18th June 2015
European retailers strategies on sustainable development; UK. Invited presentation at symposium at European Academy of Management conference (EURAM 2015), Warsaw.
5th May 2015
A New Vocabulary for Understanding Retail Change in Scotland’s Town Centers? Presentation at the LDC/CDRC Retail Thought Leadership event hosted by ESRC/Local Data Company/Oxford Institute of Retail Management at Said Business School. Presentation available as a pdf here. See also blog post here.
25th March 2015
Local Convenience Stores and Competition. Presentation at the Scottish Grocers Federation/Scottish Local Retailer “Retailing in a Challenging Environment” Conference, Stirling Court Hotel, University of Stirling. Presentation as pdf here. See also blog here.
25th February 2015
Where Are You From? On High Streets and Town Centres. Research Seminar at the University of Surrey. Presentation as pdf here.
9th February 2015
High Streets in Small Towns: problems and solutions? Dunblane Civic Trust (Due to my late unavailability, the actual presentation was delivered by Professor Steve Burt)
2014
3rd November 2014
Big Data and Retail – presentation to staff and postgraduates in Computing Science, University of Stirling.
28th August 2014
The Good, the Bad and the Unusual: High Streets, Towns and Places – presentation to the Enterprise Mash-up (Innovation Challenge) at House for an Art Lover, Glasgow. Presentation as pdf here.
29th March 2014
Scottish Town Centres and Community Policy Context – presentation at the Neilston Charrette, Neilston.
21st March 2014
The Future for Retailing in Town Centres, Conference on Regeneration 2014: Breathing New Life into Scotland’s Town Centres, Holyrood Conferences, Dynamic Earth (#regen2014)
12th March 2014
Town Centres: National and Local Issues, Haddington and District Amenity Society (HADAS), Haddington.
27th February 2014
RICS CDP Day, Perth, Workshop on Town Centre Review
25th February 2014
Chairing and introducing Town Centres Minister (Derek Mackay) at Scotland’s BIDs Gathering, Perth.
2013
12th December 2013
The Future of Retailing, Bridge of Allan and Dunblane Rotary, Dunblane.
22nd November 2013
Chair and Introductory Remarks (The Story So Far), Scotland’s Towns Conference, Inverness
13th November 2013
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly? Portas, Grimsey and Fraser, Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group on Towns and Town Centres, Edinburgh.
5th November 2013
Town Centres and High Streets,Public Finance/Deloitte Round Table on High Street Regeneration, London
4th November 2013
Towns Typology and Benchmarking, Scotland’s Towns Benchmarking Launch Event, Glasgow.
14th October 2013
Town and City Centre Futures in Scotland: Stirling City Centre, Civic Trust, Albert Halls, Stirling
10th October 2013
The Future Role of Retailing in the Scottish Economy, Scottish Grocers Federation Annual Conference, Edinburgh
3rd October 2013
Retailing, Consumers and Town Centres, Etienne Thil Conference, Paris
16th September 2013
Retail Trends and Town Centres, Glasgow and Clyde Valley Structure Plan Members Meeting, Motherwell
13th September 2013
The Role of Logistics within a Retail Strategy,Japan Society for Distribution Sciences Study Tour, Stirling
7th June 2013
Perceptions of Planning: a retail sector view, Conference of Heads of Planning, Paisley
15th May 2013
Retail Trends and Town Centres, Falkirk Council and BID Open Meeting, Falkirk
19th April 2013
Retail Trends and Town Centres, Glasgow and Clyde Valley Structure Plan Officers Meeting, Glasgow
13th March 2013
Scotland’s Retail Futures, Charity Retail Conference, Scotland, Glasgow
12th February 2013
High Streets Today? Community Leadership Day, Boots the Chemist, London
2012
7th November 2012
Where are Scotland’s Towns Heading? Scotland’s Towns Conference, Perth
25th September 2012
A Provocation on Town Centres and High Streets, National Towns Centres Review Initial Meeting, Kilmarnock
22nd May 2012
The Role of Retailing in the Modern Scottish Economy, Livingston’s 50th Birthday Conference, Livingston
28th February 2012
Destination Bookshops – as part of a healthy high street? Scottish Booksellers’ Annual Conference, Edinburgh
21st February 2012
A Provocation on Town Centres and High Streets, A+DS and STP Towns Summit, Glasgow
Stirlingretail 
Pingback: Retailing, High Streets, Town Centres and Stirling | Stirlingretail
Pingback: Regeneration – of Place and People? | Stirlingretail
Pingback: Place Matters: Local Environmental Quality and Charity Retailing | Stirlingretail
Pingback: An overview of (UK) retailing | Stirlingretail
Pingback: Re-store, Re-use, Re-generate Historic Buildings | Stirlingretail