Issue - meetings

Howard Oldstein, Capital Shopping Centres

Howard Oldstein reported on trading conditions at the Glades in the run-up to Christmas and in the New Year. The Glades had tried to engage more with the High Street, and there had been footfall gains on 24^th November with the lights switch-on. Trading had otherwise been poor in late November, but had increased leading up to the holidays, with the best Christmas trading for five years. He felt that the Council’s free parking on Thursdays initiative had been successful and should be repeated, and that the Glades should not attempt to match competitors by staying open to 9pm. He felt that the position was stable overall – although some national retailers had been lost, the occupancy rate was still at 96%. His 3-5 year plan was to establish larger units to match what was available at Bluewater.