Second Covid-19 wave could be 'knockout punch' for UK high street

Survey suggests up to 12m m² of retail space could be repurposed

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Britain’s high streets could suffer a “knockout punch” following a second wave of Covid-19 as landlords and developers are forced to close down as much as 12m m² of retail space and seek alternative tenants.

With many shops already boarded up and many more under threat of closure, a survey of more than 400 property development bosses by the consultancy Altus Group found that 38% of executives had already been switching their retail properties to other uses, while a further 57% were considering doing the same.