Boxpark founder takes pop-up business rates plea to Westminster next week

Wade - whose campaign is backed by a collective of pop-up initiatives including We Are Pop Up and PopUp Britain, the retail arm of StartUp Britain – argues that the move will help create the next generation of independent retailers.

He will submit evidence to the BIS Select Committee next Tuesday.

Wade has offered independent retailers at Boxpark a three month rent-free period if the Government backs this up with a business rates exemption.

“There are enough charity shops, pound shops and pawn shops on the high street. The future of pop-ups is to breed the independent retailers of the future who will breathe new life into our high streets all over the country. I speak to retailers who are interested in opening their first shop but business rates puts them off,” said Wade.

The campaign has more than 300 signatories since launching last week.

Wade said that retail campaigner Bill Grimsey had backed the initiative and the pop-up business rates waiver appeal could be integrated into the former Focus DIY boss’s own review into the high street.

Grimsey said: “I am very supportive of Roger’s Small Business Rates Relief Proposal, utilising space in an entrepreneurial way is absolutely vital to the high street.”

PopUp Britain’s PopUp Report, unveiled this week, concludes that pop-up shops are a training ground for brands that are considering a long-term presence on the high street.

The report revealed 82% of online businesses surveyed see pop-up shops as crucial to the development of long-term success – with more than a third saying they would eventually like to open a permanent shop of their own.