Data: The 50 most vibrant retail locations in the UK

The university city beat the likes of Westfield London, Knightsbridge, Chelsea and Bluewater to the top spot in the Harper Dennis Hobbs 2019 Vitality Index.

The index determines the retail health of a shopping area based on the proportion of upmarket and discount stores, vacancy rates, as well as the number of less aspirational tenants, such as pawnbrokers, money lenders and bookmakers.

After scoring each location based on the above variables, Cambridge managed 905 out of a possible 1,000, beating out Westfield London to the top spot for the second year in a row.

The top five best-performing retail centres remained unchanged in this year’s ranking from last. The biggest mover in the top 10 was London’s West End, which jumped five places to ninth in the list.

Expanded ranking

The list was expanded last year to assess a total of 1,000 locations with more than 40 multiples, ranging from local high streets to regional shopping malls and major city centres.

Retail parks and outlet centres were excluded from the list.

Eight of the top 10 retail destinations were based in London, although Marlborough clung onto its top 10 birth from last year.

King’s Cross in London was the most improved area in the top 50, climbing 14 places to 37th. Oxford City Centre (42nd) was the next most improved, followed by Meadowhall (23rd).

Kensington, which last year fell out of the top 20, continued its slide down the top 50 list, falling a further seven places to 40th.

Big cities and prominent malls ‘key priority for retailers’

Harper Dennis Hobbs’ head of retail consultancy Jonathan De Mello said the findings of the index proved that big cities and prominent shopping malls should “absolutely be a priority for any retailer trading in the UK”.

He said retailers don’t want to be surrounded by discount stores, betting shops and empty units, which he said were “a clear indicator of deprivation in the area”.

Harper Dennis Hobbs chief executive James Ebel said: “This latest piece of research from HDH shows that Cambridge City Centre continues to be the healthiest retail district in Britain. The city benefits from its heritage as a centre for academia, as well as its location – less than an hour from London – which draws day-trippers as well as affluent residents.”