Mary Portas, Retail Guru, 'To Recommend Government Implement National Market Day'

Has Mary Portas Found A Way To Rejuvinate The High Street?

The UK should relax licensing rules on street stalls and introduce a national market day to help breathe life back into town centres, a retail guru is expected to recommend in a Government report.

TV retail expert Mary Portas, who is leading a review aimed at developing more prosperous high streets, will deliver her recommendations on Tuesday.

She is expected to propose plans for a national market day in a bid to promote street markets and help drive traffic towards shops.

According to The Sunday Times, Portas will also recommend licensing rules for market stalls should be relaxed to make it easier for people to set up stands in their local high street.

She said: "On a market stall people can try out their ideas and get their business booming without too much cost. It's great for our town centres too, bringing in fresh ideas and products and preserving our nation's cultural heritage."

Richard Dodd, from the British Retail Consortium, said: "Based on what we are hearing this weekend it seems that there are a good number of sensible ideas ideas in the report which if taken together and adopted could make a difference to many of our troubled high streets.

"Clearly a national market day is never going to be the sole solution but alongside a range of other measures it could make a useful contribution to generate interest and stimulate shop numbers, adding to the originality and distinctiveness of particular town centres."

Portas, the star of the BBC programme Mary Queen of Shops, is also expected to suggest regulations on high street traders are axed, including restrictions on night-time deliveries, in a bid to create a more flexible and attractive business environment, the Daily Telegraph said.

It added that a possible tax could be implemented on car parks at out-of-town shopping centres to encourage more customers back into town centres.

It was announced in May that Portas would lead the review to try to halt the decline of high street shops.

Close

What's Hot