{"id":46265,"date":"2021-12-10T19:06:45","date_gmt":"2021-12-10T19:06:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?p=46265"},"modified":"2022-01-04T18:44:55","modified_gmt":"2022-01-04T18:44:55","slug":"death-of-high-street","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/death-of-high-street\/","title":{"rendered":"Death of High Street"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>COVID-19 has left a lot of consumers with no other option than to shop online, causing an existential crisis for high street stores.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The financial effects of the ongoing pandemic has had a negative impact on many companies, leaving over 8000 retail stores in the UK empty. Around 20% of the stores on Oxford Street alone, amongst them massive department store Debenhams, have permanently shut.  As of August 2021, almost a third of total retail sales are from online purchases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Businesses on Wood Green High Street lack sufficient funding for repairs and cleaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"765\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.08.25-1024x765.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46276\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46276\" class=\"wp-image-46276\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.08.25-1024x765.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.08.25-300x224.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.08.25-768x573.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.08.25-1536x1147.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.08.25.png 1918w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"861\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.10.39-1024x861.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46278\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.10.39.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46278\" class=\"wp-image-46278\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.10.39-1024x861.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.10.39-300x252.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.10.39-768x646.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.10.39.png 1070w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"784\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.30-784x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46280\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.30.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46280\" class=\"wp-image-46280\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.30-784x1024.png 784w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.30-230x300.png 230w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.30-768x1004.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.30.png 1082w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 784px) 100vw, 784px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"984\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.14-1024x984.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46281\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.14.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46281\" class=\"wp-image-46281\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.14-1024x984.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.14-300x288.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.14-768x738.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.15.14.png 1076w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Empty store spaces have been replaced by tourist shops, selling mainly American candy, CBD products and counterfeit items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"771\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.30.05-771x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46292\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46292\" class=\"wp-image-46292\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.30.05-771x1024.png 771w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.30.05-226x300.png 226w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.30.05-768x1020.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.30.05.png 1066w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"771\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.59.44-771x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46296\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.59.44.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46296\" class=\"wp-image-46296\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.59.44-771x1024.png 771w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.59.44-226x300.png 226w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.59.44-768x1021.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.59.44.png 1064w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"779\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.00.16-779x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46297\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.00.16.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46297\" class=\"wp-image-46297\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.00.16-779x1024.png 779w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.00.16-228x300.png 228w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.00.16-768x1010.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.00.16.png 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 779px) 100vw, 779px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>House of Fraser has now joined the long list of Department stores on Oxford Street that are closing down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-1 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-4 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"593\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1-1024x593.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46308\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46308\" class=\"wp-image-46308\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1-1024x593.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1-300x174.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1-768x445.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1-1536x890.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-17.24.53-1-2048x1187.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Shops in Oxford Street now resemble those of run-down Wood Green. Which ones do you think were taken in Oxford Street? Vote on our Twitter below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-5 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"823\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.09-823x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46310\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.09.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46310\" class=\"wp-image-46310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.09-823x1024.png 823w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.09-241x300.png 241w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.09-768x956.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.09.png 1064w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 823px) 100vw, 823px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"975\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.26-975x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46312\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.26.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46312\" class=\"wp-image-46312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.26-975x1024.png 975w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.26-286x300.png 286w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.26-768x807.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.26.png 1066w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 975px) 100vw, 975px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"875\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.37-875x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46313\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.37.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46313\" class=\"wp-image-46313\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.37-875x1024.png 875w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.37-256x300.png 256w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.37-768x899.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.37.png 1066w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 875px) 100vw, 875px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"632\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17-1024x632.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46311\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46311\" class=\"wp-image-46311\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17-1024x632.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17-300x185.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17-768x474.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17-1536x948.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.37.17.png 1912w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Which ones do you think were taken in Oxford Street?<\/p>&mdash; Voice Of London UK (@VoiceOfLondonUK) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/VoiceOfLondonUK\/status\/1469379386713518081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 10, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although High Streets have taken a massive hit, things are looking up for Oxford Street as IKEA owners have recently purchased the retail space formerly owned by TOPSHOP. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:100%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-1 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-6 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"780\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.56.14-1-780x1024.png\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"46319\" data-link=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/?attachment_id=46319\" class=\"wp-image-46319\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.56.14-1-780x1024.png 780w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.56.14-1-228x300.png 228w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.56.14-1-768x1009.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2021\/12\/Screenshot-2021-12-10-at-18.56.14-1.png 1072w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>This new IKEA store has potential to bring more people to start shopping in stores again as they are planning to open a more accessible store that spans across 6 floors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-tiktok wp-block-embed-tiktok\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@voiceoflondon\/video\/7040101617789570309?is_copy_url=1&#038;is_from_webapp=v1\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Word: Gizdem Albayrak; Subbed: Rinah Mungombe<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>COVID-19 has left a lot of consumers with no other option than to shop online, causing an existential crisis for high street stores. The financial effects of the ongoing pandemic has had a negative impact&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":476,"featured_media":46270,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[93,112],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-shopping"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46265","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/476"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46265"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46265\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47825,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46265\/revisions\/47825"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46265"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46265"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46265"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}