Plan to get shoppers back into town centres

Retail Ireland has detailed a three-point plan designed to get shoppers back into town centres and reverse the 25% drop in retail spend since the height of the boom.

The Ibec group’s director Stephen Lynam said retailers are trading in difficult circumstances. He said that, with as many as 75% of retail businesses located outside Dublin, town centre rejuvenations have a part to play in the growth strategy for the sector.

“Firstly, we need to focus on making city and town centres better places to visit,” Mr Lynam said. “That means identifying pilot towns and cities where new partnerships, or ‘town teams’, involving retailers, landlords, local authorities, representative groups and so on can be formed to establish targets and achieve demonstrable improvements in town centre locations.”