Independent review into the future of the High Street
Mary Portas will lead an independent review looking at how to create more prosperous and diverse high streets, concluding autumn 2011.
Mary Portas has been appointed to lead an independent review into the future of the High Street, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister announced today.
The purpose of the review will be to identify what government, local authorities and businesses can do to promote the development of more prosperous and diverse high streets.
It will also form part of the Government’s wider Growth Review which is examining how we can remove the barriers to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries.
Mary Portas is an expert on retail and brand communication. She is the founder of retail & brand communication agency, Yellowdoor and has written several books on retailing. Many will know her from recent television programmes on the subject.
Prime Minister David Cameron welcomed the review and said he was confident that Mary Portas’s “straight talking, no nonsense approach” would help create vibrant and diverse town centres.
The High Street should be at the very heart of every community, bringing people together, providing essential services and creating jobs and investment; so it is vital that we do all that we can to ensure they thrive.
As part of her review, Mary Portas will advise on how Government, businesses and shoppers can address the problems of vacant shops, adopt new business models, prevent the proliferation of clone towns and increase the number of small and independent retailers.
Mary Portas will present the review to the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Edward Davey, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS), by autumn 2011.