According to a recent study, over six in ten respondents stated that “a lot” or “a fair amount” of shops in their local area have shut down over the past year.
A third said they shop at independent retailers more frequently than they did two years ago, however, despite a desire to shop at independent stores more than they currently do, two thirds claimed the cost-of-living crisis is driving them to bigger chains.
“The number of people who want to see local high streets thriving again is huge” says Charlotte Broadbent, UK general manager at Faire, the company that commissioned the research.
“We believe that supporting independent businesses is key to making this happen because they offer so many unique products and experiences that bigger retailers can’t” she adds.
It turns out young adults aged 18 to 27 are more inclined to shop at independent retailers than any other age group, with 74 per cent favouring these over chain stores.
According to the survey younger shoppers are willing to pay extra for buying homeware, clothing and gifts sold by independent boutiques.
Charlotte Broadbent, UK general manager at Faire, the company that commissioned the research, commented: “The independent retailers we work with tell us that it’s often their youngest shoppers who most value the uniqueness and personal touch that independent stores offer over larger retailers.”
She added: “The fact they’re also prepared to pay extra for products sold by independent stores shows just how strongly they feel and how optimistic we should be for the growth of the independent retail sector in years to come.”
The perceived benefits of shopping at independent shops include boosting the local economy (55 per cent), the range of unique items on sale, and better customer service (both 45 per cent).
New research conducted through OnePoll has revealed that a staggering 82 per cent of all adults surveyed believe their local high street needs rejuvenating.
To revitalise the high street, they expressed a desire for a greater variety of shops (57 per cent), fewer vacant ones (52 per cent), new ones (47 per cent), and more independent ones (40 per cent).