The Role of Place Marketing as a Competitive Response by Town Centres to Out-of-town Retail Developments

Abstract

Following a consideration of the development of regional shopping centres (RSCs) and issues relating to place marketing activities by town centres, this paper details the collective response of a number of town centre management (TCM) schemes in the north west of England to the opening of the Trafford Centre RSC in September 1998. This response incorporated a public relations-led place marketing campaign to promote the advantages of shopping in town centres. The scope of the campaign was later extended to incorporate a more explicit and overt urban regeneration focus. The paper concludes with an evaluation of both elements of the campaign and a discussion of its implications in terms of the role of public relations in place marketing activity, and also in terms of the further development of the concept of town centre management in the North West and more generally.