Blaming shopping centre for CBD retail exodus a ‘cop out’
The real synopsis for the empty buildings in Mackay’s city centre is a more complex picture, says a national retail expert.
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Mackay's major shopping centre is not to blame for an exodus of retailers from the city centre, a retail expert says.
National Retail Association chief executive officer Dominique Lamb said the assertion was a "cop out" with the real synopsis for the lull of trade in the Mackay CBD a more complex picture.
Ms Lamb said Caneland Central and other shopping centres needed to rejuvenate their offerings every five years to keep customers coming back.
And she said while large investment structures backed centres, they did not have the "authentic" ecosystem of strip shops or CBDs that consumers celebrated as "truly local".
"We know consumers are moving to support their local communities more," Ms Lamb said, adding this expanded to behaviours such as buying Queensland and Australian-made.
Speaking at a think tank to rejuvenate the city centre, she said Mackay retailers had to "activate" the CBD via telling a story or creating an atmosphere to entice foot traffic.
Ms Lamb said this could be achieved through means such as holding concerts and family-friendly events, creating cohesiveness among retailers and luring high end retailers,
"I can tell you that high end retail are not going to want to put themselves in shopping centres unless it has a certain level," Ms Lamb said.
"As I understand it, Caneland (Central) doesn't have that offering at this time."
Ms Lamb said it would be a careful balance between preserving the region's historical and cultural links and bringing in high-end retailers to attract new clientele.
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She gave two examples of successful activations, the first being James St in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley.
Ms Lamb said it was a "staycation" destination in its own right with a "beautiful" hotel complete with exquisite dining surrounded by hatted restaurants, cafes, high-end fresh produce and regional designers' wares.
The second example was a group of business women living in Orange who joined forces to open JUMBLED then creating The Huddle - a "kick-ass" weekend complete with open air cinema, bubbles. tours, and a conference-type networking event.
How do you think the Mackay city centre could be revived? Email heidi.petith@news.com.au
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