Durham’s Silver Street now “is much more vibrant and interesting than it was five years ago”, Graham tells the Newcastle Chronicle

A positive ChronicleLive article last week described what it rightly called the “revival” of Durham’s Silver Street over the past five years.

Amid what sometimes feels like the relentless negativity of the press towards “the high street”, I was pleased to contribute to a really positive ChronicleLive article last week about what it rightly described as the “revival” of Durham’s Silver Street over the past five years.

The prompt for the story was work starting on the STACK Durham development, a leisure and cultural venue being created inside the ex-M&S that will bring a “coffee shop, food kiosks, bars, and space for live music and events” to the street.

Retail Cupid

By way of reminder, my role in Durham is that I have been delivering retail consultancy work for City of Durham Parish Council since May 2020, under the “Indie Durham City” banner.

The first phase included three days a month around business support and promotion, and since then I am doing one day a month where my focus is on being a “Retail Cupid” – matching up empty units with businesses that want to trade in the city.

The blog post that I wrote about Silver Street two years ago is a useful reminder of how things had changed up to then, and, as I told the Chronicle, the overall picture is that “Silver Street now is much more vibrant and interesting than it was five years ago”:

“Even before the pandemic, M&S had departed, and then we saw brands like Topshop, EE, Hotter and Carphone Warehouse moving out.

“This wasn’t a Durham issue, though – in many cases, these were businesses that had either gone bust or were downsizing everywhere.

“From a peak of well over a dozen empty premises in Silver Street, we are now down to low single figures, and there is healthy interest in those few units that remain.

“What is most encouraging is that the revival of Silver Street has been driven by independents as much as by chains, with existing city indies like Moon Jewellery, Durham Ginstitute and Treats upgrading to more prominent premises, and being joined by brands like Grape Tree and Tortilla, as well as distinctive places to eat and drink such as Faru and Rudy’s.

“The opening of Stack will finally bring the ex-M&S back into use, improving the appearance of the street and creating a new social and cultural hub.

“I’m constantly talking to national and local businesses that want to trade in Durham city centre, and one of the challenges we have right now is not enough available space of the right size and type in the right locations.

“That is why the upcoming reconfiguration of Prince Bishops Place – to create units that better suit modern retailers’ requirements, alongside repurposing currently underused areas for housing and a hotel – is so important.

“As Silver Street reaches capacity, other parts of the city centre are benefiting in turn. One area that is particularly on the up is North Road, driven by the new bus station and a succession of quality new businesses moving in.

“Several of those arrivals – including restaurants Coarse and Isla, and wine bar Crush – are ones that I had a hand in making happen, wearing my Retail Cupid hat.

“Just recently, I had an enquiry from someone looking for premises “preferably in North Road” – words you would never have heard just a few years ago!”

Read the full article on the ChronicleLive website here.

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