10,000 retailers launch in boomtime for Britain

Entrepreneurs are spearheading the ‘biggest revival’ since 2008 crash

AN extra 10,000 retail firms have opened for business this month compared to the same time last year – the biggest jump since the financial crash six years ago.

It is one of the clearest signs yet that entrepreneurs are leading an economic revival.

‘Retail is a big indicator of confidence,’ said David Knowles, marketing director of Creditsafe, which supplied the exclusive research.

‘You can see it react very quickly to the mood of the consumer and we are beginning to see the confidence come back.

‘It is the biggest step forward we’ve seen since the days of the crash.’

The 7 per cent increase in new retail and leisure businesses to 146,000 means that the number of companies setting up is rapidly exceeding retail failures.

The new businesses in the survey include shops, online retailers, cafes and restaurants. Knowles said the growth was ‘fairly widespread’ both by sector and geographically.

‘You are starting to see spending coming through and entrepreneurs and start-ups responding,’ he said. ‘It is in the early stages and the next 12 months will be key. Things are still fragile and companies will need to remain cautious until the signs become clearer.

‘The test will be whether these start-up firms can continue trading over the next 12 months or whether we see a high failure rate. That will depend on a continuation of the positive indicators we have seen – falling inflation, falling unemployment and rising wages.’

Creditsafe said around 5.5 per cent of retail businesses are classified in the category of ‘high risk’ or ‘very high risk’.

The study showed other signs of health for retailers. It found that three-quarters of retail and leisure firms leasing property had attempted to renegotiate their terms last year, but in the past 12 months that had dropped to 65 per cent.

Creditsafe, which provides reports on the health of individual businesses, said the reduced figure was still high, but indicated increasing stability in the sector. It also found that firms leasing retail properties had seen a two-thirds decrease in the number of late payments.