The coaching program of the province of Flemish Brabant has been running in Hoeilaart, Halle, Wemmel, Tremelo, Affligem, Rotselaar, Londerzeel, Meise, Keerbergen and Asse in recent months. The retail plan for the municipality of Asse is now ready and provides the necessary data and support to the local government and entrepreneurs.
Fewer shops
“It is an extremely important plan that has been carefully thought through and worked on for a long time. But our local traders are the driving force of the municipality and must receive maximum support,” says Sigrid Goethals (N-VA), alderman of Local Economy in Asse. This is also the opinion of Deputy for Economy Ann Schevenels (Open VLD). “The retail sector is not having an easy time with successive crises and the rise of e-commerce. Our retail coach examined how we can best support municipalities to strengthen the retail sector again.”
Everything starts with data and the province therefore publishes an annual report with important figures about retail sales in each municipality. That report shows that the percentage of commercial properties occupied by shops is declining. Hospitality and consumer-oriented services are still doing well. And also striking: the number of commercial premises for shops may be decreasing, but the retail sales floor area is increasing. So there are fewer and fewer shops, but they are getting bigger.
Coach
A specific retail plan is already ready for the municipality of Asse. “And that was necessary, because Asse has a very specific context,” says retail coach Ruben Van de Voorde. “Here you have small villages, retail shops along a paved road and the proximity of Brussels. Everything pretty much comes together here and that is why the process took longer. But we have mapped everything out and can now develop concrete actions.”
Various shopping areas were thus demarcated. The centers of Asse and Zellik form the core shopping area where small trade is desirable and where specific actions should promote local traders. You also have the zone for larger retail stores. “We want to ensure that businesses establish themselves in the right zone. But also to highlight Asse more as a shopping municipality,” says the retail coach.
Shoe store
But the vacancy of commercial businesses has also been mapped out and will be addressed. The number of shops in Asse has remained stable since 2018 and the number of catering establishments and services has increased, resulting in a lower vacancy rate. “To eliminate vacancy, we will look at what things are still missing in our territory, such as a shoe store. In addition, we will actively approach large chains where we believe that a branch would still fit in our center. Although that obviously won’t happen overnight,” Sigrid Goethals concludes.
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