Truro is proving to be a thriving commercial centre outperforming other cities in the south west, according to a new report.
The report, put together by the Local Data Company (LDC), looks at the continuing impact of the recession on town centres in the region.
Exeter, Bristol, Plymouth and Bath are showing high vacancy rates for shops, but Truro has limited space available.
Neil Scott is the manager of Truro’s Business Improvement District (BID). He said: “Empty shops are unfortunately a familiar sight in so many towns across Cornwall and the south west, so it is encouraging to see that this is less so in Truro.
“The city has so much to offer to both visitors and businesses that the results of the LDC survey don’t come as a big surprise to me.”
According to the study, Truro has a retail vacancy rate of just 6.3%, compared to Exeter’s 12.9% and Bristol’s 14.4%, against a national average of 13%.
Cornwall’s city is also outperforming other towns in the Duchy with Penzance having a retail vacancy rate of 9.2% and Camborne showing 8.6% in the report.
Demand for office space is also increasing in Truro following some major lettings in recent weeks.
The Money Group has just moved into Falcon House taking up 20,000sq ft of the 35,000sq ft spare office space in the city.
Mike Nightingale, partner at Miller Commercial said: “There are no office suites available in the city above 3,000 sq ft and the demand for smaller suites has increased significantly over the past few months with a mixture of new businesses being set up and existing businesses expanding.”
