The perfect British high street must have a pharmacy, grocer, and local chippy, according to new research.
62 percent of Brits said a mixture of modern and traditional shops are preferred, and almost a half (45 percent) believing a high street is not complete without a pub.
When it came to the shops consumers most wanted, a pharmacy (58 percent) topped the list, along with a grocer (55 percent), local chippy (55 percent), newsagent (50 percent) and butcher (50 percent).
Just under half those polled chose bookshops (48 percent) and florists (45 percent), with over a third (37 percent) voting for farm shops, record shops and vintage second-hand outlets.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, 96 percent of those polled went as far as to say that the pub is a British institution.
Whilst the majority (98 percent) think the high street has changed dramatically over the last ten years, and three quarters (74 percent) claiming it has got worse, over half (54 percent) think that a thriving high street is an important part of building a community.
Over half of Brits polled say they worry about the increasing pressure that small businesses are under due to energy costs, with nine in ten (91 percent) seeing local shops close around them.
More than half (53 percent) are concerned that more will follow, with bakeries (47 percent), cafes and restaurants (41 percent) and grocer’s (39 percent) considered most at risk.
Victoria Bacon, Smart Energy GB, said: “It is heartening to see people are proactively supporting small businesses on their local high streets. We know business owners have had to work really hard, especially over the past couple of years, to manage their running costs. One small thing they can do is get a smart meter installed, which can help them track their energy use and costs over time, control costs and manage cashflow.”
To help businesses increase sales, four in ten customers (39 percent) go out of their way to support small, independent local businesses, with a further 57 percent doing so whenever they can.
Nine in ten (87 percent) even go so far as to say they are happy to pay more to support independent shops, actively opting to go to a small business as many as three times a week.
THE PERFECT BRITISH HIGH STREET, ACCORDING TO BRITS:
- Pharmacy – 58%
- Grocer – 55%
- Fish and chip shop – 55%.
- Newsagent – 51%
- Butcher – 50%
- Hairdresser – 48%
- Bookshop – 48%
- Women’s clothing shop – 47%
- Gift shop – 46%.
- Card shop – 46%
- Pub – 45%
- Florist – 45%
- Men’s clothing shop – 41%
- Ice cream parlour – 41%.
- A deli – 38%
- Jewellers – 38%
- A farm shop – 37%
- Vintage/second hand shop – 37%
- DIY shop – 37%.
- Record/music shop – 37%.
- Barber shop – 36%
- Health food shop – 35%
- Chinese restaurant – 34%
- Chocolatier – 33%
- Travel agent – 33%.
- Artisan coffee shop – 33%
- Arts and crafts shop – 33%
- Fishmonger – 32%
- Off licence – 31%
- Cheesemonger – 29%
Image: Reuters via Beat Media Group subscription
