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RREF Forum - Do we need a high street?

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Event information
Date 4 November 2021
Time 17:00-18:30 (Timezone: Europe/London)
Venue Online
Event types:
Alumni events

Registration is now closed, if you still wish to attend please email the team - RREF-events@henley.ac.uk


Vanishing household names in retail is now no longer shocking, with the stories of Arcadia Group and Debenhams taking centre stage in the press. An undeniable signal of change, but what does this mean for the high street itself? Do we even need a high street? Or just not as we know it?

It certainly appears the impact of the pandemic has accelerated us along a trajectory we were already taking. After all, who needs to waste time queuing at a checkout when you can have a much more convenient shopping experience in the palm of your hand? With many employees still working from home our change in lifestyles have incubated this further as lack of footfall drives many more stores closer to closure.

So what is the future of the high street? If the old model no longer fits the needs of our modern society, is there something different that does? Or is there an opportunity to look at the high street as a different space entirely?

Join us online for the RREF Forum on Thursday 4th November, 5 – 6:30 as we are joined by industry’s leading experts to answer these questions as we showcase those who are bucking the trend though diversification, innovation and transformation.


Who’s on the speaker panel?

Dr Emma Street, Associate Professor of Urban Policy and Governance, Real Estate & Planning, Henley Business School.

Research by Emma Street and Victor Nicholls from the Department of Real Estate and Planning examined how Bracknell delivered its town centre regeneration, the first post-war New Town to have achieved transformation at such a scale. Read more here.

Mark Robinson, Chair at High Street Task Force and Property Director and Co-Founder of Ellandi.

Over the last 10 years Ellandi have established an unrivalled track record of successfully creating bright and vibrant, retail-led spaces at the heart of the communities across the UK. Ellandi has always recognised the role of complementary alternative uses in successful placemaking, delivering award-winning mixed-use developments that have re-invigorated under-invested town centres.

Jennet Siebrits, Executive Director, Head of UK Research, CBRE.

Jennet Siebrits is an economist with over twenty years’ experience who joined CBRE 16 years ago to set up the residential research team. She is Head of the UK research team, with a focus on the big issues in the real estate world; identifying trends, analysing the market, and providing clients with unrivalled insight and ideas.

The RREF Forum event series usually takes place in person for a small charge. During this current period, we are offering the opportunity to join for free online, however, if you wish to make a contribution to the charity you can do so by selecting the relevant ticket type.

All funds raised from this event will be used to support the charitable activities of RREF, therefore please select the ticket price you feel comfortable paying. If you wish to contribute more regularly to RREF please click here.

Contact us

Alumni & Development Team

If you have any questions, please contact the

Email: alumni@henley.ac.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)1491 418 843