BUSINESSES are showing interest in the string of shop buildings left empty in Bournemouth town centre, the deputy leader of the council has said.

The town’s Lidl is expected to shut in October after the supermarket became the latest chain to announce it is quitting the town.

Central Bournemouth has already lost its branches of House of Fraser, Marks & Spencer, H&M, New Look and Wilko, while the Beales and the national Arcadia group went out of business.

BCP Council’s deputy leader, Cllr Philip Broadhead, insisted there were positive signs for retail in the town centre.

“All town centre retail has been struggling but I think the death of retail on the high street has been highly overstated. It’s just going to look different in the future,” he said.

“On a daily basis I get information about what conversations are going on about these buildings.

“There are conversations happening about what replaces both the Wilko and Lidl units. None of theses are standing still.”

“M&S, Debenhams, House of Fraser, Wilko, all these are having interest for a range of new futures.”

The council is poised to issue a design brief and planning guidance aimed at reviving a "retail quarter" in Avenue Road.

“We’ve had our new footfall figures, which show a continuation of a really positive upward trend in footfall, not just in Bournemouth but in Poole and Christchurch too,” said Cllr Broadhead.

“People are continuing to use our high streets but clearly they’re using them in a different way – in particular, the move away from ‘big box’ retail. Town centre locations across the country are much less reliant on big box retailers. People want something a bit different.”

He said the council had been investing heavily in its Cleaner, Greener, Safer campaign for the town.

“This takes a while to come through the system but after the millions of extra pounds invested in our town centre, people will start to see a difference very soon,” he said.

Tony Brown, who was chief executive of the Beales chain before its demise, predicted last year that Poole would eclipse Bournemouth as a retail destination.

Mr Brown, who now runs New Start 2020, which reopened Beales in Poole, said customers were telling him the same thing.

“From a brands point of view, our customers in Poole have told me that there’s nothing for them in Bournemouth any more,” he said.

“If you want to coffee and a snack, Bournemouth is the place to go. There are more cafes than you can shake a stick at.

“The shopping experience inside a mall is better than the shopping experience walking down the high street in Bournemouth.

“Bournemouth is just not nice for a shopper. It’s great for maybe a night out and for daytime eating.”