Post-COVID-19 Multifunctional High Streets

The future of the high street was bleak even before COVID-19. Retail shops were already shutting down and thousands of people lost their jobs. This crisis exaggerated even further once the pandemic hit.

Now nothing will be the same again especially the high street. Let’s dive into the changes brought by the pandemic and the future of the high street post-COVID-19.

Changes Brought By COVID-19

Before we can comment on the future we need to understand what has happened. Here are a few changes that came about as a result of the pandemic:

• Consumer habits have shifted
• Consumers are now giving preference to online shopping
• Retail stores are dying
• Acceleration of digital models
• Demand for retail space has significantly gone down
• Demand for delivery has gone up

Of course, there are many more, but these evolutions have changed the landscape entirely. So, now that we know how everything has been affected let’s move onto a visualisation of the future of high street post-COVID-19.

The Future Of High Street Post-COVID-19

All these changes are signals that drastic revolution need to be brought to completely transform the landscape of the high street. Local bodies, councils, and the community will have to be involved to transform this and bring about a change.

Since the demand for retail spaces has gone down, it is expected that this demand will be replaced by residential properties. The high street is not just going to be a retail space post-COVID-19. It will serve a "multifunction purpose".

This means that there will be a diversity of the businesses that will exist. There will be residential spaces, local business spaces, leisure activity spaces, and much more. After all, if you want the high street to stay then you will have to transform it according to changing times and needs.

The epidemic has highlighted loneliness and isolation which is why we expect to see more community spaces built, focused on the local community and enhancing the sense of connectedness people have to the place they live.

The Coronavirus has led to an emphasis on supporting local and community building - perhaps the future of the high street post-COVID-19 is bright.

Final Words

The pandemic has accelerated all the changes that were in motion since a few years now. Retail spaces were already dying. However, with COVID-19 it all accelerated and now if the community wants their high streets to survive then they will have to be adapted accordingly.

Local shops and businesses can use their space and the high street to serve a variety of purposes.