Reinventing the high street

How do we design a high street as if the world mattered? That was the question set by Retail Reset at the Changemakers Fayre at Westminster Hub, last night.

As the post-it notes and scribbles started flying, pretty soon a debate emerged about chain stores and big business � where do they sit in all this? Do they have a role to play or are they just a recipe for clone town Britain? How can they contribute more positively to our high streets?

Which got me thinking�because while it�s great to see more and more businesses think seriously about how they can have a more positive impact, too often this feels hidden behind a CR report � a series of (albeit well-meaning) programmes, initiatives and commitments which can seem removed from the everyday activity of the company on the high street.

Surely there�s a missed opportunity here? Rather than just talking about what�s going on elsewhere, why not show it in action? Have a clothes retailer give over a section of their shop floor to provide working space for young designers, or a supermarket run regular classes in seasonal cooking in their store, or a bank deliver drop in business advice sessions for young entrepreneurs, or a communications company provide a space to support small business�

You get the idea.

Companies need to be brave about showing people what it means to them to be a good business � and through doing so they can not only talk to their customers more effectively, but play a vital role in making our high streets more exciting, inspiring and interesting places to be.

Sweet Success

As someone who grew up in a house next door to 6 buzzing hives, I�ve always had an interest in bees.

When we were small, it was all about the delicious honey and trying to avoid standing on the bees that had decided to take a break on the garden lawn. Now, well, it�s still about delicious honey, but I�ve also come to appreciate just how unique and interesting the whole concept of bee-keeping is.

Honey�s great because it�s so easy to be local. And I mean really local, because bees will go far and wide to hunt nectar. This summer, Travelocity identified The Fairmont Royal York in Toronto as one of its top-5 green hotels. The 10,000 bees on its roof, which produce honey for its restaurant, are key to its success and branding as a Honey Moon Suite.

Honey is linked with sustainability � in our minds and in reality. People love honey because it's natural. Its production relies on, and is friendly to, the environment. It can also be a social solution in areas where few sustainable farming options exist. From London to Afghanistan, from NYC to Malawi, bee-keeping is a trend that�s good for the environment and good for communities.

There�s a community in Sweden that�s so convinced by honey as the symbol of sustainability that they�ve made a local currency out of it: the Djing in Lund isn�t backed up with gold, but jars of the golden stuff. Perhaps honey money isn�t the solution for the Euro crisis. But let�s hope bees keep their growing role in our ideas about sustainable success.