Brighton and Hove is bucking the national trend with fewer empty shops than most other towns and cities across the country.
A report by the Centre for Cities think-tank said that Brighton and Hove had the fifth-lowest rate of empty shops at 9 per cent, behind London, Cambridge, Oxford and York.
The Brilliant Brighton Business Improvement District (BID) carried out a survey last month and found 18 empty shops – four fewer than the 22 counted by the Centre for Cities.
And from today (Thursday 14 August), the biggest empty shop in Churchill Square is officially no longer vacant, with the opening of IKEA, although River Island is closing.
Brighton and Hove City Council said that much of the city centre had a “relatively high rate of churn” because most shops were suitable for smaller independent businesses rather than the bigger brand names found in Churchill Square and the surrounding area.
Brilliant Brighton chief executive Gavin Stewart said: “The city centre is bucking the national trend at the moment.
“The current vacancy rate in the Business Improvement District is 3.63 per cent the overall UK Retail Vacancy Rate: 14 per cent (for quarters to and four of 2025).
“This figure has remained steady quarter on quarter, showing only a slight year-on-year increase of 0.2 per cent.”
Key findings from the BID in Brighton City Centre are that five vacant properties are owned by Brighton and Hove City Council.
Most properties are vacant for short periods but some are vacant longer taking the average time a property is empty to 21.1 months, according to the BID.
The streets with the most vacancies are Western Road, with eight, and Bond Street, with four empty shops.
There are no empty businesses in North Street (including North Street Quadrant), Kensington Gardens and Gardner Street.
The Centre for Cities report found that one in five shops were empty in Bradford and Newport, compared with one in 12 in London and Cambridge which topped the poll.
Labour councillor Jacob Allen, the council’s cabinet member for customer services and public realm, said: “Brighton and Hove is doing well when compared with other key cities in the UK, as the Centre for Cities report highlights.
“It identifies Brighton as having one of the lowest retail vacancy rates in the country so we are in a good position.
“One of the city’s strengths is the mix of independent and larger retailers which complement each other and is a major draw for visitors.
“We also celebrate our strong local partnerships working together to stimulate local economic growth.
“However, we recognise it is a challenging time and cannot rest on our laurels. We are focusing on improving the look and feel of the city and are continuing to improve our city centre as an attractive place to visit and do business.”
Actions the council is undertaking to improve the city include increased jet washing and graffiti removal, Visit Brighton promoting the city year-round, and setting up the Brighton and Hove Growth Board and Seafront Development Boards.
There is hardly room for another coffee shop or barbers! How many of them are paying business rates, VAT and income tax?
None if they are a small business and exempt
Excellent news!
Could it be that we have more charity shops than other places?
What happens to the figures when you remove the 40 cash launderettes (vape/ crack pipe shops)
It’s bad enough. An awful lot of independent businesses are hanging by a thread. Particularly since it became so impossible to park anywhere near most of them, even for 5-10 minutes to dash in and dash out. That’s what killed the institute that was Dockerill’s in North Laines after 110 years. Contractors couldn’t just park outside and nip in for a few minutes to pick up the kit they needed any more. Dockerill’s should have sued the council.
If the car spaces are full that’s a sign of an active town and economy!
Apparently no one comes here yet the car parks are full!
There are several loading spaces on Church Street so it shouldn’t have been a problem
BTW they once wanted £100 for a lock for my front door that I actually got for £ 20 elsewhere. That’s why they went bust.
I’m fairly certain that I’ve mentioned this before, but the research on this topic reveals a weak connection between a business’s success and its ability to park outside.
I don’t think contractors were not using dockrills due to a lack of places to park, more that the tool stations of this world hold a lot more inventory and are considerably cheaper.
It failed because it was a family business with nearly 6 people on shift every day when really it should have been 2 or 3. Only so much money can be made by selling cheap brooms and door knobs.
Dockerills closed because they were expensive and greedy. The property became more valuable than the business and no-one had the appetite to run a failing business model. They delivered and also there’s a car park just a few doors up. Your fallacious statement just displays your sense of entitlement to park where and whenever you want, regardless of the impact to others. The sooner we get more red routes in Brighton, the better.
Unfortunately Unemployment has hit the highest rate since the pandemic, as a direct result of decisions Rachel Reeves has made.
Labour’s Jobs Tax is making it more expensive to employ people, forcing businesses to cut back and lay off staff.
Once again, a willful misrepresentation by the Con Councillor.
Unemployment has risen alongside employment because more people have re-entered the workforce from economic inactivity, and it is now the lowest inactivity rate since April 2020. Here, let me break it down in simple maths of say 100 people, so you can understand this basic concept:
1) Initial
Employed: 60
Unemployed: 5
Economically inactive: 35
Unemployment rate: 7.7%
2) What Happens?
10 people move from “inactive” into the labour force (they start looking for work).
4 find jobs immediately → Employed rises from 60 → 64.
6 don’t have jobs yet → Unemployment rises from 5 → 11.
Inactive falls from 35 → 25.
3) New Situation
Employed: 64 (↑ 4)
Unemployed: 11 (↑ 6)
Economically inactive: 25 (↓ 10)
Unemployment rate: 14.7%
Thus, mathematically proving that you, Ivan, remain terrible at political spin.
Liz Truss is my response to you Councillor.
Her impact on interest rates and business confidence caused immeasurable damage to the economy.
Incorrect Mr Lyons
The reason the country is a total disaster is due to a couple of things that happened over the past 10 years:
Camerons gamble: Brexit – went about as well as a fart in an elevator
Borris’s fraud: PPE contracts awarded to his mates for kit that wasn’t needed and was so substandard it’s never been used, billions and billions added to public debt. Yet he isn’t in jail.
Then the gobsmackingly toxic dumb episode that was lizz truss.
I’ve never seen a high street bottom out so fast in my life than the 2 weeks after her mini budget. Which we are all still paying for now with expensive mortgages.
So yes, Rachel reeves adding a bit of national insurance so massive businesses like Amazon actually start to pay some tax isn’t particularly good for job creation, but I’d hardly call it the reason we have an issue with unemployment. But then I wouldn’t expect anything but goldfish memory from conservatives, loom at Robert jennerick talking about immigration lol. Mind blowing
The latest UK unemployment rate is 4.7%, its highest in 4 years, while the number of job vacancies has now been falling continuously for 3 years, affecting 1.67 million people aged 16 and over, according to the Office for National Statistics .This rate is up from the previous year, with unemployment levels increasing by approximately 206,000.
Unfortunately the economy is tanking under Rachel Reeves.
Once again, a willful misrepresentation by the Con Councillor.
Ivan, you’re cherry-picking yet again.
Yes, unemployment is 4.7%, but employment has also risen, and inactivity is at its lowest since 2020. That means more people are in the labour force. The fall in vacancies has been happening for three years as a post-COVID cooling, long before Rachel Reeves. Blaming her for long-term trends is pure political spin, not sound economics.
Once again proving that you, Ivan, remain terrible at political spin.
I’m afraid Labour have been an absolute disaster for the retail sector in Brighton. This is not just my view speak to any commercial surveyor and ask them about how negative the retail and hospitality environment has become locally. There are now many distressed sellers and few people wanting to sign up to new leases unless they are selling ‘vapes’. On top of this the Labour Council are trying to get red lines put outside all the shops in western road to push the commercial traffic into residential areas where kids and residents live to increase pollution. This is against the wishes of many retailers. They estimate in some cases they will lose 20% of their trade. Labour is anti-business and anti-anyone that strives and wants to work hard with their out of control spending.
Oh I had forgotten that we have a town centre. Thank you B&Hnews for reminding me
The number of unemployed individuals increased across all durations (up to 6 months, 6 to 12 months, and over 12 months) compared to the prior period. Job vacancies fell by 44,000 to 718,000 in the three months to July 2025, the lowest since April 2021, reflecting a cooling labour market, particularly in hospitality and retail.
Righto, the extent of the financial malaise suffered by this country has nothing to do with Thatcherite Conservatism, Eurosceptic exceptionalism, that dish-faced plank Cameron, Brexit, May’s stupidity, Johnson’s inanity, Truss’ lettuce-flavoured insanity and Sunak’s uselessness.
The Tories and their fellow travellers are unfit to govern.
Vape shops, nail bars, barbers are popping up on every highstreet. Its a easy way to get money into the UK. Money laundering.
National average of empty shops, any other country would change the use of such properties, but this is the UK and our solution is to import barbers and kiosk managers to take up the slack, no wonder politicians have no credibility.