6.33 Glasgow is the largest retail centre in the UK outside London, with a regional, national and international catchment (Figure 6.8). Retailing supports 29,000 jobs and investment in shopping and commercial facilities has, in recent years, played an increasingly prominent role in the economic development of the City. The quantity, quality, and accessibility of these facilities help determine the overall quality of life for the residents of the City and the wider Conurbation and the quality of experience for its visitors.

Figure 6.8: Top UK Retail Locations

6.34 The City has experienced unprecedented pressure for retail development in recent years. This culminated, in 1999, in the opening of the new shopping malls at Buchanan Galleries and Braehead (now in Renfrewshire), together representing over 98,000 square metres of new retail floorspace. The completion of the Buchanan Galleries brought the retail floorspace in the City Centre to 465,000 square metres.

Buchanan Galleries

6.35 Shifts in retailing patterns towards larger, modern centres, such as the Forge at Parkhead have inevitably had an adverse impact on the more traditional tenemental shopping areas. The problems of existing centres has been exacerbated by recent and significant out-of-centre retail developments, unrelated to the established hierarchy. These and related issues were the subject of a consultation exercise The Future of Shopping and Town Centres in Glasgow (December 1998) which formed part of the 1998 Local Plan Review. The comments received in response to this exercise have helped to inform the proposals and policies included in the Plan.