A popular property influencer has sparked a debate over the state of Worcester’s High Street – but his viral video may not tell the full story.
Property creator and landlord Rick Gannon’s TikTok sees him walking around the city centre showing ‘closed’ businesses, asking ‘is this the death of the High Street?’.
However, the city council and TikTok followers have pointed out that several of the businesses are not closed and the property guru has since apologised.
Worcester City Council said the percentage of empty retail units in the city centre equates to below the UK average retail vacancy rate.
Mr Gannon has recorded an apology after being contacted by our reporter – however, the original video, which has over 90,000 views was still available on TikTok as Worcester News went to press.
@rickgannon What happened to Worcester High Street? #rickgannon #propertyinvesting ♬ original sound – Rick Gannon
A spokesperson for Worcester City Council said: “The percentage of empty retail units in the city centre equates to circa 10 percent and this is below the UK average retail vacancy rate.
“In recent years, the city council has been successful in securing Government funding to make significant investment in the city which has brought underused buildings back into use.
“Town centres need to respond to changing shopping habits, but in primary shopping areas, planning policy normally requires that ground floors are kept for retail and commercial use.
“There are some great opportunities for investments in Worcester city centre and the city council always welcomes conversations with owners and potential investors.”
The city council also confirmed planning permission was granted to turn the former Debenhams into the hotel.
It also confirmed the council is currently in discussions with the owners of the former Co-op on Angel Street, former Argos on Shambles and units facing onto Angel Place.
Mr Gannon told Worcester News: “It’s fantastic to hear that there are plans to bring old buildings back to life.
“It’s always a shame to see buildings that are closed and remain to be closed.”
He believes shop closures are down to three things: a lack of people using the high street due to online shopping, buildings being left derelict meaning build costs are higher and getting through “red tape” with regards to planning.
“Worcester is a beautiful place,” he added. “It’s a lovely place, I just want to point out the reality for shopkeepers.
“I have been made aware that two of these are not actually closed and I stand corrected.”
@rickgannon Public apology I got it wrong? #rickgannon #property ♬ original sound – Rick Gannon
After providing the comment to Worcester News, Mr Gannon took to social media, saying: “I’ve got an apology to make, hear me out.
“I’ve just been contacted by Worcester News. This is about a video I did last week about how many closed shops we have in-and-around Worcester city centre.
“I wanted to say that there were two shops that some people pointed out weren’t actually closed.
“One of them was Worcester Computers, the other one was the back of Costa Coffee. I apologise there was two shops out of the 37 that I showed you.”
What do you think about Worcester city centre? Which shops do you wish would open? Let us know in the comments.