Christmas Shopping; Coffee Shop decline; Relaxed Tailoring
The new trend for stretchy suit trousers and elasticated waistbands.
England's lockdown is over now, which means Christmas shopping can begin in earnest on the High Street. Non-essential retailers selling clothes and gifts will be hoping the next few weeks deliver a much needed uptick in sales. Although pubs and restaurants in areas with higher restrictions, still can't reopen and in Wales new rules mean pubs, restaurants and cafes will have to close at 6pm from Friday. We'll visit Chester to find out how retailers are feeling.
The number of UK coffee shops has doubled for more than 25 thousand since 2009. But this year, many of the larger chains have experienced a drop in trade. In contrast, smaller independent coffee shops, have been doing well. We'll visit one of those, and speak to an analyst about how the industry is changing.
Plus how the decline in visits to the office has led to increased demand for comfier, less restrictive clothes. It began with everyone wearing more tracksuit bottoms, but designers are now fitting elasticated waistbands to smart trousers and skirts in a sign the trend for 'relaxed tailoring' could be here to stay. We'll speak to a fashion industry expert about that.
Presenter: Winifred Robinson
Producer: Jess Quayle