Exploring the geography of retail success and decline: A case study of the Liverpool City Region

The retail economy has undergone a profound change over the past two decades. This is largely related to a number of competitive and economic shocks, in particular the rapid increase in online sales that has represented a profound change to the way consumer goods are bought and sold. As a result, many traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ retail businesses have perished, however, the degree of that decline varies geographically with some places being more resilient than others. In this study we examine the retail landscape in the Liverpool City Region where some startling examples of variability of experience can be identified. These vary extensively from notable success stories, such as Liverpool One shopping destination, to high streets which have become symbols of decline. As such this paper provides empirical evidence on economic health of the traditional retail spaces in the Liverpool City Region and identifies attributes that make some of the retail centres a viable proposition for the future. It also creates a conceptual typology of the sub-regional retail centres linking their economic performance to a success or failure in strategic positioning of a particular centre. Implications of our findings to the city region are also discuss and placed in a wider national policy context, in particular the outdated ‘town centre first’ approach.