- Huw Hughes
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Intu has said footfall across 13 of its shopping centres has been
“steadily improving week-on-week” since stores were allowed to open on 15
June.
The firm, which operates Manchester’s Trafford Centre and Lakeside in
Essex, fell into administration in June following failed crunch talks with
its lenders, though its shopping centres have continued to trade.
The company said Friday that since face coverings in retails stores were
made mandatory in England on 24 July, footfall at its branded centres rose
sharply by 7 percent compared to Springboard’s national benchmark of 4.4
percent.
Though footfall is not back to pre-Covid-19 levels, Intu said the
progress shows that its best locations are “starting early steps to
recovery”. Across those centres, 85 percent of brands have now reopened.
Scotland is seeing a particularly positive rebound, with footfall at
Intu Braehead at 92 percent of last year’s levels. Footfall at Intu Watford
is at 60 percent compared to last year.
“A shopping centre environment, by its nature of being a private space,
can be more closely managed and the visitor experience adjusted carefully,”
Jim Tucker, joint administrator of Intu and partner at KPMG, said in a
statement. “Safety measures can be put in place to control the number of
people in a location at any one time, managing the flow of people ensuring
social distancing guidelines can be adhered to, and making sure that face
coverings are worn throughout.
“This level of control over a shopping environment creates a place where
visitors and brands can interact with some peace of mind, something that
cannot always be achieved in an open, unmanaged space. And from the data,
we can see that this peace of mind is encouraging more people back, more
quickly.”
Photo credit: Intu Lakeside
