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DSGi’s property director Mark Feltham has stated that the group’s future lies not in retail parks, but on the Internet.
Speaking at RetailWeek’s Property Directors’ Forum, Feltham warned property landlords that the way people shopped was changing, and that as retailers were forced to adapt, they too would have to follow.
He cited the example of the group’s bricks and mortar store’s poor performance during 2007, contrasted against the massive success of its online offerings as proof that retail is changing.
The Dixons brand, which had been struggling, was removed from the High Street in 2006, and replaced with the group’s Currys.Digital stores. Explaining the move, Feltham said that DSGi had embraced e-tail and that it had paid off.
"The reason we took Dixons off the High Street is because we had a business that was accounting for less than 10 per cent of our revenue," explained Feltham.
"If I was a landlord, I would be concerned by DSGi’s future in terms of stores. Our business is now 12.5 per cent over the Internet and we will take our business forward in any way."
Feltham also warned landlords not to expect a return to the old days when they had power over the retailers, thanks to a lack of space in which to too business.
