Retail
Leeds was described in 2005 by the Lonely Planet guides as the 'Knightsbridge of the North'. The range of shopping facilities, from individual one-off boutiques to large department stores such as Harvey Nichols and Louis Vuitton outlets, has greatly expanded the Leeds retail base. The Victoria Quarter, several existing arcades connected together by roofing the entirety of Queen Victoria Street with stained glass, is located off Briggate, Leeds' main shopping street. Other popular shopping attractions include Leeds Kirkgate Market, Granary Wharf, Leeds Shopping Plaza, Headrow Shopping Centre, Crown Point Retail Park, The Light, The St John's Centre, The Merrion Centre Leeds, Birstall Retail Park and the White Rose Centre.
Leeds was ranked 9th in the league tables of top 50 UK retail centres in the Retailvision 2011 survey. This placed it ahead of Bristol and Leicester but behind Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham. The city has fallen from its position in 2003 when it was ranked 3rd on Experian's list of UK shopping destinations. The next year it was overtaken by Birmingham to be ranked in 4th place. Leeds has an almost equal mix of premium retail and value stores, with premium accounting for 9.8% of all stores in the centre and value stores 9.3%. This balance is unusual for a top 10 ranked retail destination. The proposed Eastgate Quarters will enlarge the shopping area significantly, and is due to be anchored by John Lewis and a second Marks and Spencer store for the city. The Trinity Quarter is a large shopping development under construction that is expected to open in 2010. It is a part redevelopment of a run-down part of the city centre, and part re-modelling of the existing Leeds Shopping Plaza.
Read more about this topic: Economy Of Leeds
Famous quotes containing the word retail:
“A free-enterprise economy depends only on markets, and according to the most advanced mathematical macroeconomic theory, markets depend only on moods: specifically, the mood of the men in the pinstripes, also known as the Boys on the Street. When the Boys are in a good mood, the market thrives; when they get scared or sullen, it is time for each one of us to look into the retail apple business.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)