Two articles (£) in the Times caught my eye last week.   Legal & General IM, the landlord of Kingsland Crescent in Poole, has been piloting a project to turn around the fortunes of a near-derelict high street, by offering two years’ rent-free to independent businesses.  2 years on, around 60% are still in occupation and have now started to pay rent, whilst the remaining units have been taken by other businesses. Overall turnover has improved dramatically and the locals quoted for the article were evangelical about the scheme. Particularly interesting is the symbiosis with the next door shopping centre, where empty units have also been repurposed for market stalls, craft fairs, NHS diagnostics, adult education and co-working spaces.  Footfall from these has flowed into improved turnover for the nearby retailers.

Meanwhile, over in Oxford Street, Westminster Council is co-funding an initiative to mentor and support new businesses to the area, in a bid to tackle the scourge of the American candy shops. These businesses will also benefit from rent-free periods and business rates reductions to help them get started. 

If these sorts of schemes are successful, might we finally be seeing the start of the long-awaited evolution of the British high street? Landlords may need to become comfortable with significantly longer delays before their new tenants start to provide them with reliable rental income, which in turn will impact on cashflows.  And it will mean a more risky overall tenant profile if more space is given to unproven start-ups.  But, given the high void rates up and down the country, maybe they won’t have much choice?