Almost one in six high street shops lie empty
The shop vacancy rate in the UK stands at 15.9%, according to figures released by local councils to restructuring specialist Duff & Phelps.
Following a Freedom of Information request to local councils, Duff & Phelps has calculated the total number of retail units that stand empty is 50,578, based on the mean average of the councils that responded.
This equates to an average of 121 retail units per council, and is a vacancy rate of 15.9% based on ONS figures that there were 319,000 retail businesses in 2018.
Phil Duffy, managing director at Duff & Phelps, argues the impact on local councils of empty shops on the high street should not be underestimated.
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