‘King Street to be the royalty of retail again’
JEWELLER SAYS ROAD WILL BE ‘BOND STREET OF THE NORTH’
MANCHESTER’S struggling King Street WILL become the ‘Bond Street of the North’ once more, insists a luxury jeweller who has just set up shop there - because more and more millionaires are set to move into the city.
Peter Harrington says the road, which is currently plagued by empty units, must make itself even more elite than it was in its heyday in order to attract super-rich customers who cannot currently get what they want in the city.
His firm, Harrington and Hallworth, expanded into the street from Wilmslow a week ago, despite many businesses having moved out due to high rent and rates.
He believes luxury shopping can thrive on the road as more expensive housing is built and wealthier people move in, again making the street Manchester’s answer to Mayfair.
The M.E.N. reported last week how nearly 20 units are vacant on King Street and St Ann’s Square as firms move to larger and cheaper spaces. But Peter points out the number of jewellers in the area has doubled in recent years and says the real transformation is yet to come.
“It’s hardly started yet, although brands that were only on Bond Street are now here in Manchester and all doing well,” he says. “As the city gets built, a few years down the line lots of very wealthy people will be living in the city, making Manchester more like an international city - London, or Paris or Dusseldorf - where living in town is no longer for poor people.
“The likes of Select are building fantastic apartments, millions of pounds - and they wouldn’t be building them if they didn’t think they could attract the right clients.”
When he was first looking at King Street as a location, he admits he was ‘horrified’ by the way it had declined. But he believes it simply needs the right mix of businesses.
“I agree that King Street is in a bit of trouble at the moment,” he says.
“It’s been changing for the last few years and hasn’t quite found its niche yet.
“But all the quality independent jewellers are still on King Street so I’m very confident in the position I’m in.
“I still think the potential for King Street is very strong, although I’m not sure the mix of businesses is right at the moment.
“For example Suri, which only lasted a few months. The food was excellent but it had the ambience of a bar - and I see it as more ‘petit delice’ here, a little oasis in the middle of a very hard commercial city.
“I see it as a very genteel street, nice businesses, a little more laid back. A great opportunity for independents.”
Peter opened his city centre branch a week ago after more than three decades in business, first in Ashton-Under-Lyne and later in Wilmslow.
He says that although his rent is reasonable, it’s ‘down to landlords to strike the right deal with tenants’ on a street where some Londonbased property owners have been accused of overcharging.
However, he also believes it isn’t necessarily the place to start out on a shoestring.
“There’s no point coming to King Street on a budget. I couldn’t have opened here when I first started in business,” he says. “I’ve been in business 36 years and you can’t imagine how lowly we were starting out.”
He does not believe the street is suitable for a row of eateries as the road is, in his view, more of a daytime destination.
Instead he thinks it should aim to be Manchester’s answer to the capital’s most exclusive shopping streets in Mayfair.
“Bond Street, South Molton Street, I would say that would be the aspiration. It needs to be higher class than it used to be as the aim.
“I don’t think you can go too high on King Street.”