Not all those who wander are lost
Date published 30 July, 2019
Sheringham - not all High Streets are Equal
The High Street is dead. We all know that. And it is not entirely a false accusation, is it? Rows of charity shops interspersed with boarded up retail units, decorated with real estate boards. The reasons are all well rehearsed, too!
From time to time, when we are wandering around in Norfolk, we go to Sheringham. On each occasion, the same thing has struck us. The main street through Sheringham, where most of the shops are, is busy. Very busy. It was tough to get a picture that was not just a sea of people who did not want to be in the picture.
I grabbed the snap because, on the face of it, there is no reason. There is no obvious explanation for the level of busy. Of course, it is by the sea. But not all the shops are seaside shops. Of course, it does have a heritage railway station there. These things will bring some people. But not at the level I saw, visiting the ordinary shops there. And parking, too, is no better than anywhere else, so that is not the secret. More or less all the usual reasons seem to fade away.
The truth is, I don't know why this High Street is so busy. Maybe there is some reason behind the scenes, like a more proactive attitude to businesses and rates, and perhaps even rents.
So I have no convincing explanation to offer. However, the fact is, the High Street seems often to be very decently busy. And there are some very good things about it. There is a street food stall, for example and the food there is really good. There is one of those hardware stores that smell like 1953 and sell everything. There is a quaint dress shop that your mum will love. There is a tiny designer tee shirt shop. There is a proper butchers shop. There are zero charity shops. And much, much more. Then, after that, you get to the beach, which at lower tides offers sand, and a promenade that you can stroll along in a very seasidely manner.
Some times, there is a market, too. It takes up a big chunk of the main carpark by the railway station, but no one seems to mind, and it's a good market.
I greatly enjoy our visits to Sheringham. I have not, however, come up with a meaningful explanation of why it works. It does work, though, and all town planners should spend a week there understanding why, because it is a town centre almost free of boarded up shops.
That all adds up to a bustling town centre. That will fuel its own continuing success, a success that I strongly suspect could be replicated elsewhere provided someone takes the time to understand what is causing it.
We are happy snappers!
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