The retail sector needs to talk about product and place more.
Retail and leisure places are credible again, so why aren’t we talking about them more? There are
375 billion reasons why we should.
I’ve spent most of my career making the case for this sector. Retail was responsible for 2.6 million
jobs in 2024, the majority of them women, and its economic output close to £115 billion. Hospitality
sat at an almost identical total in 2025, and a couple of years prior its economic output was £70
billion. And now also within leisure, the experience economy is showing exponential growth as
spend is looking for memories alongside products.
That combined is about one in every seven jobs in the UK, and the impact extends far beyond its
assigned value. Remember “Eat Out to Help Out”? Hospitality was identified by the then government
as something that needed to be protected and supported, because as a nation our love for a coffee, a
pint or a meal out in the company of others has taken this sector from a “nice to have” to cultural
necessity.
Operators were very visible during the pandemic, the destinations far less so. What is often missed
is that places provide the platform on which retail and leisure can thrive. Much of those sectors’
economic impact comes from other sources – live-stream, social, and white-label media for example
– but an awful lot is driven by destinations. What is developing is an endorsement of the value of
place and operator in tandem.
Operators, owners, investors, advisors, supply chain partners and more, are all part of a single
ecosystem with a single audience – the consumer.
There are over 6,300 retail and leisure locations across the UK. That’s 6,300 places that are pivotal
for the communities they serve, whether a city centre, transport hub, regional mall, local parade,
rural town, or leisure park. 6,300 places that themselves generate about £84 billion in gross value
add, and yes, that 375 billion figure mentioned earlier is every pound sterling these places facilitate
in sales.
Astounding numbers, generated by brands and their people, in partnership with places and their
people.
We’ve been through decades marked by structural upheaval, with pandemic disruption and an
extended cost-of-living crisis continuing to have a pronounced impact on retail and leisure, and, by
extension, the places in which they operate. But, equally, the challenges have generated a dynamic a
renewed confidence and sense of direction in the way place serves brand, following years of graft
and evolution.
By focusing on relevance, recruitment, culture and community, they have effectively adapted to
changing consumer behaviours – accelerated by the pandemic, new working patterns and the role of
online driving footfall and vice versa – to provide the stage from which operators can perform, and
perform well. The people behind the places are experts in how to curate a complementary collection
of retail, hospitality and entertainment, mixing uses and formats, independents and multiples,
long-standing and novel, in a way that resonates with their audiences. Experience and community is
at the heart of the adaptation, understanding there is value bricks and mortar can give, that you
simply cannot get in front of a screen.
That change, credibility and renewed confidence is putting retail and leisure places at the forefront
of the minds of important actors. The sector is attracting investment, and not just because it’s seen
as a value-buy. Yes, deals being struck today aren’t reaching the levels seen 10 to 15 years ago, but
destinations are an appealing investment opportunity, because they are steadily demonstrating
resilience and positive momentum, even in an unpredictable world. Recent global turmoil might
have quelled immediate appetite, but it hasn’t killed it. The second half of this year into 2027
should see transacting continue, across a diverse spectrum of those 6,300 places.
The strength of physical retail and leisure requires a blurring of the lines between place and the
operators within it. Even the strongest brands need to be a part of compelling places, that provide
meaning and inspire participation. Successful destinations are constantly evolving alongside the
innovative operators and entrepreneurs that call them home. That is why places merit the same
visibility, investment, and recognition as the retail and leisure brands they bring together.
My message then to everyone in the ecosystem shaping retail and leisure places is this: you have a
central role to play in developing investment strategies that align positive social and economic
impact alongside strong returns. The future of physical experience will be shaped by both product
and place, so let’s talk about it more.
Vivienne King, Revo executive board (former chair) and founder of Impactful Places
As published in CoStar News on 29th July 2026