Over twenty businesses are either opening or expanding in the centre of Bath, with a variety of companies bringing empty properties back into use.
Cllr Kevin Guy, council Leader, and Cllr Mark Roper at Knoops in Old Bond St, Bath | Photo © B&NES Council
Homeware and clothing traders, gift shops, food and drink outlets and a leisure venue are among the new businesses arriving in the city centre.
New real estate data for Bath shows that vacancy rates for retail premises are currently between 3% and 4%, which is significantly lower than the 10.2% average High Street vacancy rate in the UK.
Data from the Bath Business Improvement District (BID) shows that footfall in the city centre is also now almost recovered to 2019 levels.
Recent business openings include Haus Homewares, Beats of Bath, Kokoro, Pieminister, Sweet Little Things, Lane 7, Edesia and Sobey’s Vintage.
Businesses opening soon include Burger King, Budo Ba, The Milsom, Leon, Knoops, Rosa’s Thai, Watchhouse and Zara in Southgate.
Several other stores are also coming to the city, with planning and licensing applications having been submitted to B&NES Council.
The local authority’s income from its commercial properties is built into the budget as a funding source that contributes to providing frontline services.
Councillor Mark Roper, cabinet member for Economic Development, Regeneration and Growth, said: “It is very encouraging to see this excellent take-up of our commercial properties and the number of new businesses coming into Bath.
“Recently we’ve seen strong demand from a mix of retailers who have been attracted to our commercial lettings and the fact that Bath is a great location to do business.
“We are pleased to be able to support them and ultimately help revitalise our high streets.”
Allison Herbert, Chief Executive of Bath Business Improvement District, said: “I am very pleased to see so many new businesses coming into the city.
“The BID team works hard to engage with prospective investors, providing insights from our data projects and pointing them in the right direction.”
Allan Lloyd, Partner at CSquared in Bath, said: “Our data shows that there is just a 3-4% vacancy rate in Bath city centre for retail premises in Bath at the moment, space in the city is in high demand.”
