The ins and outs of retail

A man bringing a national food franchise to Blenheim says you would be ‘‘crazy’’ to open a store in Blenheim in the current retail environment as two national retailers close their doors.

Both Dowsons Shoes and Pagani will shut this week. This follows the closure of independent cafe Joocy Loocy last week.

Pagani’s last day for its Blenheim shop is Wednesday, while Dowsons is closing tomorrow.

John Derry, who owns Speights Ale House and Goodhome, said businesses based off the back of the agriculture and wine industry seemed to be doing well in Marlborough. However retail and hospitality were doing it tough.

Derry said he was still bringing a Hell Pizza to Blenheim and while it was ticking along nicely he could not give a date when it would open. The store would open in the near future, he said.

Trading in the winter months often meant ‘‘treading on water’’, he said. ‘‘The retailers that are in town at the moment are doing a great job of it, especially with the pressures of online sales and minimum wage increases, but I think you’d be crazy to open anything new at the moment.’’

He believed the town needed to look at itself as a whole.

‘‘There are so many empty shops in the retail area of Blenheim, it doesn’t look good if you are a visitor coming in. I think there needs to be a strategic approach as to what happens to them,’’ Derry said. ‘‘It would be nice to get the town regenerated a little bit and get some more people coming through.’’

A council spokesperson said more than $2 million worth of street and landscaping improvements were planned for central Blenheim over the next few years, including in Lower Scott St, Wynen St and Market St North.

Anna Pettersson, who owns retail store #Overflow, said they were forever researching the market and working hard.

‘‘If you have the right stuff, your rent isn’t too high and you have good customer service, you can make it work,’’ she said. ‘‘It is a balance, I do a lot of marketing on social media as well.’’

Both Pettersson and Derry said Kmart, on the outskirts of Blenheim, would have brought added pressure to central retailers after it opened in April.

But as some shut up shop, new restaurants will open.

Blenheim Business Association chairperson Lynette Rayner said there were several new businesses preparing to open in the town centre.

The centre was constantly evolving, becoming more diverse, she said.