New rent deals to ease tough times for shops

The moves comes after two high profile retailers occupying prominent premises in the Rivergate Shopping Centre collapsed.

Their demise left huge gaps in the shopping centre’s offering, which was made worse by a number of other smaller vacancies.

Now the centre’s managers are looking to offer new flexible leases for traders to help keep them in the centre.

Managers have also revealed they are in talks with new retailers to occupy a number of empty units plus the prominent store left empty by the collapse of Poundworld in June.

That came hot on the heels of the departure of furniture retailer Multiyork late last year.

A spokesman for the Rivergate Shopping Centre said: “The centre is a reflection of the pressure the wider UK retail market is currently suffering, with struggling national tenants going into administration and local smaller companies being squeezed by increasing costs and poorer consumer spend.

“We are engaging with the smaller tenants, offering them more flexible lease terms as a means of combating the current retail difficulties.

“In addition we are currently in discussions with other occupiers for the centre, but will not comment on the specifics.

He added: “Two of the Rivergate’s anchor tenants (Poundworld and Multiyork) both went into administration earlier this year.

“We have already relet the Multiyork unit to Yours Clothing and we are in negotiations on the ex-Poundworld unit.”