Author: Leigh Sparks
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February 2023 – New piece for The Conversation on online retailing (see commentaries tab)
January 2023 – Roll over of some areas for new year, plus The Conversation piece on Christmas trading updates published (see commentaries tab) and main posts
December 2022 – End of year tidying up and re-arrangement, including link to EDAS podcast on places and towns (see presentations tab)
April 2022 -new journal article published (Journal Articles page) on Twenty-One Years of Going Shopping and Marketing History
Top Posts & Pages
- The Buttercup Dairy Company
- Retail change and why we fell in love with supermarkets?
- Logistics and Retail Management 5th Edition
- A (Retail) Sense of Place
- UK Grocery Market Share 1997-2019
- London's Welsh Dairies: The Welsh Milk Trade
- Oxford Street, Hull and Beyond
- Strange Things in Self-Service
- Urban Logistics and Retailing
- Co-operative Tokens, Sports Direct and The Bristol Pound
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Tag Archives: Regeneration
Town Centres in Wales: Bounded Muscularity?
A few months ago I, together with Phil Prentice (STP), had a long discussion with representatives of Audit Wales around enhancing town centres. This came in the wake of the review I chaired, and the report I authored, for the … Continue reading
Posted in Car Parking, Government, High Streets, Out of Town, Places, Regeneration, Retail Change, Retail Policy, Scotland, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Scottish Government, Small Towns, Town Centre Action Plan, town centre first, Town Centre Review, Town Centres, Towns, Understanding Scottish Places, Understanding Welsh Places, Wales
Tagged Audit Wales, Bridgend, Car Dependency, Foundation Economy Research, Non-domestic rates, Place, Regeneration, Retailing, Scotland, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Scottish Government, Tax, Town Centre Review, Town Centres, towns, Understanding Scottish Places, Understanding Welsh Places, Wales
2 Comments
Dead or Alive?
A few weeks ago I was reading an interview in the Guardian and the interviewee, the writer Barbara Kingsolver, said about the Great Barrier Reef: “You’re hearing about everything that dies, you’re not hearing about everything that’s still alive. If … Continue reading
Posted in Community, Consumers, Local Retailers, Localisation, Regeneration, Reinvention, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Small Shops, Small Towns, Town Centres, Towns, Uncategorized
Tagged High Streets, Localisation, Media, Places, Regeneration, retail failure, Store Closures, Store Openings, towns
5 Comments
Time Out in Lisbon: Part One
It has been some time since I was in Lisbon and thus it was a pleasure to receive an invite to present a keynote to a conference on retail, consumption and urban governance, especially in early autumn, which is slightly … Continue reading
Posted in Academics, Architecture, Brands, Eataly, Emporium Shokuhin, Food and Beverage, Food Court, Food Tourism, Gastronomy, Historic Shops, History, Lisbon, Markets, Places, Regeneration, Retailers, Scotland Food and Drink, Singapore, Time Out, Tourism
Tagged Brands, Eataly, Food Culture, Food Tourism, Lisbon, Markets, Mercado da Ribeira, Regeneration, Scotland's Food and Drink, Singapore, Time Out, Tourism
3 Comments
Unlocking the Potential of Scotland’s Towns
For most in Scotland, November 9th will probably be recalled as the day President Trump became a reality. The irony that that day was the 27th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall will not be lost on some … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Creative Places, Digital, Fife, Government, High Streets, Places, Planning, Proactive Planning, Regeneration, Retail Change, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Scottish Government, Small Towns, Town Centre Action Plan, town centre first, Town Centre Living, Town Centre Review, Town Centres, Towns, WTLS16
Tagged Community, Connectivity, Creative, Democracy, Digital, Governance, Places, Proactive Planning, Regeneration, Scotland's Towns, Scotland's Towns Conference, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Town Centre Living
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‘Rescuing town centres in the light of changing retail trends’
Given it was the hottest July day ever in the UK, it was some relief for the audience at the latest National Retail Planning Forum (NRPF) seminar to be indoors in air-conditioned luxury at Carter Jonas, just off teeming and … Continue reading
A Sense of Place
A few months ago I was approached to write a short piece for “Context – the magazine of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation” as part of a collected set of items on The Changing Face of Retail. A couple … Continue reading
Posted in Design, High Streets, Historic Shops, History, Places, Signage, Spaces, Streetscapes, Town Centres
Tagged Community, Design, High Streets, History, Places, Regeneration, Retail, Retail History, Spaces, town centre
2 Comments
Scotland’s Towns Conference 2014: Quick Reaction
The flagship national event of Scotland’s Towns Week is Scotland’s Towns Conference, held this year on the 19th November, in the magnificent Paisley Town Hall. Organised by Scotland’s Towns Partnership – Scotland’s ‘go-to’ organisation for Scotland’s Towns – this year’s … Continue reading
Posted in Digital, Entrepreneurship, Government, High Streets, Public Realm, Regeneration, Retail Policy, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Town Centre Action Plan, Town Centre Review, Town Centres, Towns
Tagged Creativity, Digital, Entrepreneurship, Regeneration, Scotland's Towns Conference, Scotland's Towns Partnership, Scotland's Towns Week, Town Centres
2 Comments
Only in America?
Despite having lived in the USA for extended periods of time I am still unclear about my favourite parts. The western swathe from New Mexico to Wyoming is unique, but the south-eastern states often draw me back. So following a … Continue reading
Posted in Department Stores, Downtown, Heritage, Local Retailers, Localisation, Regeneration, Regulation, USA
Tagged Asheville, Downtown, Localism. Creativity, Re-use, Regeneration, USA
1 Comment
Town Centre Regeneration – Learning Lessons?
A few weeks ago the long-awaited Douglas Wheeler Associates report on “Town Centre Regeneration: how does it work and what can be achieved?” was published by the Scottish Government. Four parts are available for download on the website; Summary, Report, … Continue reading