Revamp of Telford Shopping Centre ‘to continue town success story’

Sections of Telford Shopping Centre have been shut while work on the new Fashion Quarter continues.

There are also empty units near the former Asda and BHS stores, where the centre’s new Northern Quarter will be. When the work is complete in the spring, it will house a new Aldi store.

Last week soap shop Lush announced that it would be leaving its long-held unit near the bus station, citing “landlord redevelopment” as the reason for its closure.

But Richard Sheehan, chief executive of Shropshire’s chamber of commerce, said that although the work was putting pressure on retailers, it would all be worth it in the end.

“We know there’s redevelopment going on within the town centre, and there is no doubt there is pressure on retailers,” he said. “Any disruption to footfall can have a negative impact.

“There’s still a huge amount of choice and opportunity within the Telford Shopping Centre. Telford as a whole has evolved, with all the restaurants and bars that are developing close by that does increase the foot traffic.”

“It’s difficult to persuade a business to set up in the middle of a refurbishment environment, but nevertheless the opportunity for independent retailers is very real once the work is concluded

“Telford Shopping Centre will no doubt follow the success story that is Telford.”

Mr Sheehan said the retail landscape had changed massively in the last few years, and big companies knew they could in part rely on a web presence when things get tough.

“It is fair to say that the most successful retailers have a highly efficient internet presence,” he said.

“Many have developed their web-based activity as we see an increase in 14 per cent in online sales in the last 12 months. While it is not a solution to the problem, if there are things like adverse weather or redevelopment it can help mitigate it

It is not yet known when Lush will move out of the unit, but 13 permanent jobs remain uncertain while the retailer looks to relocate its workers across the business.

The store does not know whether it will move to another site in Telford, saying a suitable unit hasn’t been found as yet.

Centre manager Glynn Morrow said that it would remain in discussions with Lush to find it a new permanent home.