"Don't switch off the lights and go home" - looking to rebuild Leeds businesses after lockdown

This week there have been signs that the city is waking from its enforced closure and in this series about the effects of coronavirus on social inequality, the Yorkshire Evening Post talks to LeedsBID about how that will happen and who may have been worst affected.

Martin Dickson, head of marketing at LeedsBID said the city's independent traders had either remained open or diversified and had actually been in a better position than big nationwide chains as they had the creativity, ideas and ability to adapt quickly without having to go through time-consuming corporate processes.

He explained: "The independents can be more adaptable because they are single businesses, don't have a large infrastructure and know the local economy. They knew they were crash and burn or diversify and find new opportunities.

"Laynes Espresso for example, started a takeaway, dropped it back a level and came back with service at the door. Several are talking about maintaining new processes and have ended up diversifying because of that. While the intention is to re-open with the right guidelines, Laynes will carry on this takeaway and delivery. In adversity there is opportunity."

Over at Kirkgate Market, some traders have carried on working and ended up getting a whole new customer base who would have normally used the high street or supermarkets.

However, he said the flip-side was the damage that was being done to some of the high street's biggest brands such as Carluccios and Primark, while others had survived due to being trusted names for years, especially as what people consider or perceive as being important and ethical in the current situation had changed.

He said: "The worry is for the larger businesses. Primark is a good example. This is a huge shop that has a few hundred staff and is all about material consumption and for businesses like that, the business model is more threatened.

"Some of the others, like Marks&Spencer and Next, who appear to be financially okay from what I understand, were able to furlough and maintain from cash reserves. They could not have done that for much longer which is why they are looking to re-open.

"People have a resurgence of community spirit and familiarity and are about values. M&S and Next fit more into that ethos which is coming out."

Over the last week there have been signs in the city centre that it is making preparations for re-opening. Customers have been social distance queuing outside banks and Foot Locker has been working inside the store.

In the Trinity Leeds shopping centre, two metre markings and a one way system is being marked out and in M&S, while the food hall was still open, the upper floors are being re-arranged.

However, despite the measures, the biggest hurdle is getting people back into the city centre and shops.

He said: "People will go back but the volume will not be there for quite some time. They want people to come back, they need the money back in the tills, we have got to make people aware we are back open but have got to make people feel re-assured that it will be safe to come and shop. If the big retailers get that right, I think they will be okay.

"The big worry for all of us, and I feel for the staff, is in hospitality. The bars and restaurants will clearly struggle. We were a couple of weeks into lockdown and Carluccios announced it was going into receivership and there was a big restaurant in Trinity. Pizza Express, you have to assume there is a significant amount of reserve because they could not have shut for eight weeks.

"If certain businesses do go, new ones will open when they are in a better place."

Despite the uncertainty, Mr Dickson added that there was a drive among the Leeds businesses to fight back.

He added: "There is a general feeling of people coming together, to use the schemes that have been made available and want to get back to it to safeguard jobs. There are always casualties in a crisis but, talking to the business community they are really working hard to make sure we don't lose too many jobs and that is a positive.

"I don't feel the doom and gloom. There is a recognition of the challenge but I don't think we should switch the lights off and go home. Everyone wants to fight back."

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