A review of 30 schemes by leading retailers, including Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's, found that in many areas they were the only regeneration on offer. Many schemes merely involved large plain buildings in a big car park, which were unsuitable for town centres, said the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (Cabe).
It praised Sainsbury's for a development in Fulham, London, involving a store being built behind smaller shops and housing to avoid dominating the area.