Spending in Colchester towns centre drops £100 million in just 12 months

3:00pm Sunday 30th September 2012 in News

SHOPPERS spent £100 million less in Colchester town centre than they did last year, new figures claim.

League tables published by retail experts Caci claim residents, shoppers and tourists spent £440 million in Colchester town centre in 2011/12, down from £540 million.

The fall means Colchester has fallen from 43rd in the list of most popular town and shopping centres in the UK to 50th.

But business leaders pointed out the tables were estimates drawn up using just credit and debit card payments and insisted the town centre was performing well.

See Monday's Gazette for the full story

Comments(17)

Reginald47 says...
4:48pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Rubbish!

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meadowlady says...
5:12pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Well I think there is something in that but not always for the reasons one would think. For example, I spent 10 minutes trying to buy Liz Earle products in W&G last week but nobody was around to serve me. I gave up on that and progressed to the jewellery section where I tried to buy some pearls. Twenty minutes later having hung around whilst one member of staff tried to find another member of staff to help me I left the store at the same time as two other grumpy people who were in the same boat. I will spend my money in London next week. Several stores in Colchester need more staff because I can't be bothered to hang around for what I consider to be an unreasonable amount of time.

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Im_Like_HELLO says...
6:11pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Well if it's only based on credit and debit card transactions, and even then only an estimate, the figure of £100m might as well be plucked out of the air.

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rhetoric says...
6:23pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Meadowlady has put her finger right on the spot!
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It is no longer a pleasure to go and look at some more costly goods, ensure that they are exactly what is required, and deal with a courteous assistant who really cares whether one buys or not.
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No wonder online sales are growing and High St sales are shrinking. A lot of the blame is on the shopowners who see cutting staff as a way of making more profits. It isn't the way! We shoppers just go for the easier and more pleasant option.
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It is acknowledged that by doing this, we are doing ourselves a slight disfavour. There will be less and less town centre outlets and less and less choice in the shops, and we will be obliged to shop online whether we want to or not, thus denying ourselves the pleasure and safeguard of examining the goods before purchase.
In the end, nobody wins but the online vendors.

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Say It As It Is OK? says...
6:49pm Sun 30 Sep 12

I'm a great supporter of keeping jobs in Colchester but at what price? Shops should be competitive and not try to rip off customers

A prime example....

Recently I wanted an 8gb SD card (type 10 video quality). The best price in Colchester from a well known national chain was £32.00 but to buy from the same company through their online shop the price was £21.99

However, searching online the same item from Amazon, cost £12.89 + 99p delivery. It arrived in the post next morning. No hassle and no excessive parking charges plus a saving of £14.00 against a shop purchase.

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Heinz says...
7:26pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Might the drab and unkempt appearance of the whole town centre (and excessive parking charges) have anything to do with it?

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fnagwaa says...
9:01pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Well I've recently bought my kitchen appliances from Stellisons and they were fantastic, staff really helpful and they even matched the prices on the internet so it's not all bad, I think it just depends on the store concerned.

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Boris says...
9:47pm Sun 30 Sep 12

All the town centre shops that I go to provide friendly and helpful service, at competitive prices. I avoid most major chains and I pay cash, so for the purpose of this survey I don't exist.

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Logo30 says...
10:00pm Sun 30 Sep 12

Whilst acknowledging the potential inaccuracies of this report, this is potentially not great news for Colchester town centre.

Coupled with the imminent opening of a full blown John Lewis department store in Chelmsford, and Ipswich starting to get its act together / attracting big investment, things might conceivably get worse for Colch.

Any ideas on whether Vineyard Gate is still going ahead?

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Reginald47 says...
12:25am Mon 1 Oct 12

Stop going on about parking. About £2.50 for the whole day is dirt cheap if you don't park in NCP because you're lazy.

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rhetoric says...
6:12am Mon 1 Oct 12

Boris, I have assumed from your various comments that you don't live far from the town centre, so that the shops there are your locals, and you can presumably go to them at times when they are not busy or crowded.
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If you avoid the chain stores and also pay cash, that would suggest you are not shopping around or seeing what bargains are available elsewhere, unless you do a great deal of window shopping and internet searching? How then can you say you get your goods at "competitive prices"?
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Most of us, these days, have to go with the economics of the situation and watch for keen pricing. I might not support any business that was thought to be unethical in some way, but otherwise have to be somewhat prudent.
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We all love the small independent shop with a polite staff and goods that are not run of the mill, but for most of us reality steps in.
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Many small businesses survived in the past because their owners and families slogged on for inhuman hours, putting a good face on for the customers and putting up with a great deal of flak in return. That was exploitation by the consumer, no two ways about it. In return for their independence these businessmen and women paid a high price, often in health and family life.
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We have "evolved" to an age of huge conglomerates and impersonal "service" and I know that is inevitable. Our fight now should be for consideration for the customer and a pleasant shopping experience wherever we go, and there is evidence in some chains that customer care is an issue being addressed. Long may that continue!

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The REAL Norm says...
10:00am Mon 1 Oct 12

I'm too busy admiring the 'art' at firsts*ite when I'm in town now. No time for shopping. I'm too busy being a member of the cultural elite.

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Simon Taylor says...
12:13pm Mon 1 Oct 12

Way back, when CACI showed Colchester doing better than Ipswich and I pointed out that it was only an estimate based on card spending, I was told that it was pretty reliable and that I didn't know what I was talking about!

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G.Speel says...
12:54pm Mon 1 Oct 12

I am not surprised that spending in the town has gone down - just look at the state of it. It is shabby, dull, full of empty shops and very unimpressive these days. There is absolutely nothing about it, apart from Castle Park, to charm people into the town. I used to spend over £50.00 every week in M&S but not now as I only go into the town centre when I really have to because of the state of the place.

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meadowlady says...
4:25pm Mon 1 Oct 12

Stellisons in the town centre? Where please?

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PROOFREADER says...
3:43pm Wed 3 Oct 12

meadowlady wrote:
Stellisons in the town centre? Where please?
They are not in the town centre, they are in Harwich Road near the junction with Parsons Heath.

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wardyt says...
1:17pm Fri 5 Oct 12

What can you expect when you fill the Highstreet with, Charity Shops, Pound Shops, Bookies and Money Lenders!?

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