Study finds £5.46billion retail and night economy boost for Glasgow

Shoppers on Glasgow's Buchanan Street: Picture: John Devlin

The retail and night-time economy (NTE) sectors have contributed more than £5 billion to Glasgow in the last two years, according to a new report.

Glasgow Caledonian University researchers found that £5.46 billion and 33,000 full-time jobs were generated by the two sectors for the city in 2014 and 2015.

More than £3.3 billion and 17,000 full-time jobs were linked to the retail sector over the two years, the study commissioned by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce on behalf of the city council found.

The NTE sector - defined as activity in the city between 6pm and 6am - helped support 16,200 full-time jobs and generated £2.16 billion, researchers from the Moffat Centre for travel and tourism business development found.

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Moffat Centre director Professor John Lennon said: “The sheer scale of the jobs and revenue contribution of retail and the NTE will come as a surprise to many, and something worthy of note for the city centre strategy.

“It’s well-known that Glasgow is a leading retail centre but again the extent of the figures remains an eye-opener.

“Some interesting new information came to light in the study, for example, while we knew that our restaurants, bars and clubs were major contributors to the NTE, nobody has considered the importance of the growing number of fitness establishments operating within the period of the NTE.

“We discovered that there are now more than 20 city-centre gyms, the vast majority of which are open 24 hours a day.”

The research results will “feed into” and “inform” the city centre strategy - a five-year plan developed to ensure Glasgow remains one of the top urban tourism destinations in Europe.

Glasgow City Council leader councillor Frank McAveety said: “This is a very welcome and important study of these vital parts of the city’s economy.

“Understanding the contribution and role of these sectors can help the council and partners in our planning now and in the years to come.”

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