Independent traders surviving amid all the vacant premises

IT APPEARS to be a bustling high street, but the number of shop vacancies in Ayr is one of the highest in Scotland, according to new figures, with 20.6 per cent of premises empty – up 5.2 per cent on last year.

However, the reality is a much more mixed picture. During the property boom, a high number of estate agents appeared along the high street, attempting to capitalise on the area’s strong market. The UK’s property crash has seen a severe cull of these businesses, leaving behind empty premises.

According to one estate agent, high business rates in some parts of town were discouraging new businesses from moving in, while the bigger global brands such as Woolworths were disappearing from the town centre.

He said of the town: “We’re not too bad here. There’s still optimism and there’s still good business to be done, but it’s just like everywhere else, and it’s more the big multinationals that have shut. Independent traders are still doing pretty well. It certainly has a booming restaurant sector.”

Councillor Bill McIntosh, leader of South Ayrshire Council said: “I’m very surprised by these figures. This does not reflect what we are seeing in Ayr town centre on a daily basis.”