Leeds named as one of top three retail destinations to visit in UK
The city of Leeds has been ranked in the top three retail venues in the UK, moving up one place from last year.
It was ranked in the Javelin Group’s annual ranking of the UK’s top 3,000 retail venues, in which the top three destinations outside of London were named as Glasgow in first place, Manchester in second and Leeds in third.
Leeds has a total shopping catchment population of nearly 3.2 million people regionally.
Cllr Richard Lewis, Leeds City Council executive board member with responsibility for transport and the economy, said: “I am delighted with Leeds going up the league of premier shopping location in the UK.
“In the last few years a number of new and exciting developments have sprung up in the city including the Trinity Leeds shopping centre, the arrival of the first direct arena and the start of work to the new Victoria Gate scheme.”
The £150m Victoria Gate scheme, spearheaded by retail property developer Hammerson, will bring a new shopping centre complex to the heart of Leeds.
It is anchored by a flagship John Lewis store and is estimated to open by Autumn 2016.
Cllr Lewis added: “Over the last 10 years almost £2.7 billion of major property development schemes have been completed in the city with a further £178 million of schemes under construction at the end of 2013.”
