RETAIL SATURATION - THE DEBATE IN THE MID-1990S

In an earlier paper we presented a picture of the provision of British food retail floor-space which was attentive to both the debate on ret ail saturation and the underlying competitive processes shaping the ge ography of the grocery sector. There we argued that there was still co nsiderable variation in the provision of food retailing floor-space in the United Kingdom, with analyses presented at the regional (county), interurban, and intraurban levels. We concluded that saturation can o nly ever be a local phenomenon and that there was still considerable p otential for retail expansion. However, we also suggested that such ex pansion was unlikely to occur without a notable degree of change in th e complexion of the sector. The aim of this paper is to update that an alysis and to present arguments pertaining to food retail change durin g the middle of this decade-that is, following the property crisis tha t halted the earlier 'golden age' of store expansion-by focusing on re cent change in terms of both retail fascia and locality.