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Is the high street hotting up?

Who said the high street was dead? With soaring temperatures in the UK, the public is shunning their computers and phones and heading to the Great British high street to part with their hard-earned cash.

According to the latest CBI Distributive Trades Survey, 32% of retailers said that sales volumes were up in July than compared to a year ago and 13% said they had to place more orders with suppliers as a result. A combination of the unusually nice weather (does this weather even belong in the UK?) and World Cup fever have been thanked for the boost in high street sales this July, which also saw 45% of motor traders report that sales volumes were up compared to this time last year (convertible anyone?).

These figures should be seen as a huge positive for the high street, especially following the results from the survey campaign #WDYT (What do you think?) which found consumers want more and better shops available to them. The survey, which was completed by 300,000 people, found that 78% of respondents worry about the high street and 70% are concerned about shops closing – proving that the public still back “popping into town” to do their shopping.

All the positives do come with negatives though – in the same CBI Survey, retailers reported that they expect sales to slow again in August and orders to flatten out. With subdued real wage growth, households are still feeling the financial pinch and retailers are still battling with the reduced costs online retailers are able to offer.

Along with the Government’s inquiry into high streets and town centres 2030 to examine how local areas are planning for the future of their high streets, this month’s results should be seen as a step in the right direction to securing the future of the British high street.

Annual Field Awards 2020

Field Team Awards 2020

Every year we aim to recognise and reward the individuals in our Field teams who have gone above and beyond while embodying our company values. This year, our teams have felt additional pressures but have consistently worked hard and impressed both us and our clients. It was a tough task to choose our 2020 winners, so we want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their commitment, professionalism and resilience during this difficult time. Without further ado, here are the 2020 winners! Our 2020 winners New Employee of the Year For surpassing expectations of a new starter Winner – Kelsey Rawlings Shortlisted nominations for New Employee of the Year• Alex Woffindon• Paige Matthews Leadership Award For leading by example and showing genuine leadership qualities Winner – Luke Randall Shortlisted nominations for the Leadership Award• Jason Crawley• Tom Bowyer Directors Award Identified as an integral person within our business who has worked to a consistently high standard throughout the year Winner – Garry Leck Shortlisted nominations for the Directors Award• Mike Webb• Mark Goulding Effective Communication Award Communicates effectively with Management, Resource and Field teams Winner – Harry Stringer Shortlisted nominations for the Effective Communication Award• Tom Bowyer• Mihai Cojanu

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