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Retail boss who is on a mission to sell a positive image of Hull
DAVID Laycock's job puts him at the heart of Hull. He is centre manager at St Stephen's. As he describes it, his job "is to bring people together".
The shopping centre occupies a prime location in the middle of the city. Step out from the train station and it is immediately to your left. The centre opened in September 2007 and, said Mr Laycock, is on target to achieve its footfall targets.
The 44-year-old states proudly that retailers such as Topshop and New Look are doing very well, while others, such as Body Shop, Orange and Game, are beating their comparables for performance.
The centre is not yet full – 43 of circa 50 units are occupied – but despite this, the scheme is "definitely in line, if not ahead, of expectations".
Wearing a floral shirt and colourful tie, Mr Laycock is enthusiastic about his task and speaks animatedly about the centre, its role in the city and the potential of the region.
Less than two years after its opening, St Stephen's "feels like an intrinsic part of the community, encouraging people back into the city". Key to this, said Mr Laycock, is "partnership working".
As you might expect, during our interview he refers to most, if not all, of the main players involved in the city, in both the public and private sectors. He helpfully offers relevant email addresses and phone numbers from his mobile.
He sits on the board of the Hull Business Improvement District, a not-for-profit partnership led by local businesses and hosted by the local chamber of commerce, and has developed relationships with the Prince's Trust, Yorkshire Forward and Hull City Council.
Mr Laycock said: "It's getting people to come together and deliver positive change.
"I love the potential in the place and people. I see a vivid potential in Hull.
"I see there is potential in building and developing a city. For me to play an active part (and] giving something to the people to be proud of (is] massively exciting.
"I love the relationship side of things as well. Doing things together in units is hugely exciting."
He believes that Hull is undergoing a renaissance. St Stephen's fits into that view: "We want people to think it is friendly; there's a warm welcome here, there are good attractions. It's very different, it's a good place to shop. There is The Deep, Hull Truck Theatre. There's a lot of stuff that happens here."
Mr Laycock added: "What we are determined to do here is encourage people back in to the city. Our footfall for the city is way, way ahead of the regional average.
"We are looking at five per cent year on year, whereas the region is down. Our footfall figures prove that people are coming back into the city.
"People are coming back in to Hull and liking what they see sufficiently to come back again.
"You can't get from the bottom of the stairs to the top in one step. You can get onto people's shopping list. We can get the city on the map for people.
"This is Hull's time to strike."
Mr Laycock grew up near Macclesfield and went to North Staffordshire Polytechnic to read business studies.
His first major job was with C&A. He stayed with the firm for seven years and worked around the country before joining John Lewis as department manager. Six years later, he founded his own business.
Baby d was a three-floor, 9,000 sq ft nursery store in a converted warehouse building in central Harrogate. It opened in 2000.
"The idea was to spend more time with my family," said Mr Laycock. "It had the opposite effect."
The store closed in 2002.
His next move was to Moda in Pelle, helping the ladies' footwear retailer to grow from its Yorkshire base to national profile.
Mr Laycock located units, oversaw store design and development and, in his three-and-a-half years with the business, opened 18 shops.
"It stretched me, which I enjoyed. Having worked for myself, I had more of an idea of the real world."
Afterwards, he moved to Liverpool, to launch the Metquarter, a shopping centre with high-end names, including Armani Exchange and Flannels. It was a favourite among the city's footballers.
After the launch, Mr Laycock decided he wanted more responsibility and so joined St Stephen's 10 months ahead of launch.
His role has been to enhance the operational efficiency and usability of the centre.
ING, the Dutch financial giant, built and funded the 200m centre through its real estate arm with a forward funding agreement with British Land, said Mr Laycock.
British Land bought the centre in December, he added.
His current employer is Munroe K Asset Management, which specialises in managing shopping centres.
Today, around 1,300 people are employed in the centre. This should rise to around 2,000 when all the units are occupied.
After our tour of the shopping centre, Mr Laycock sits down with a coffee in the distinctive wooden caf suspended in the middle of the curved steel and glass thoroughfare.
He makes the daily commute from Skipton, where he lives with his wife and four children. Outside work, he enjoys running, swimming and property renovation.
He steers the conversation back to his favourite subject – Hull.
A man whose career in retail has taken him around the country, to places including Cambridge, London, York, Wetherby and Saffron Walden, should be a good judge of place.
He describes Hull as Tales of the Unexpected.
"This is because people don't expect it to be as good as it is. It's getting cleaner, it's getting smarter, there are better attractions and it is safer.
"The majority of people that open shopping centres from build normally leave within six months.
"I'm a four-and-a-half hour commute from my family each day, I think that speaks volumes for how much I like it. It's a cracking place, all the better for knowing."
DAVID lAYCOCK - THE CV
Title: Centre manager.
Date of birth: June 12, 1964.
Education: Business Studies North Staffs Polytechnic.
First job: Graduate trainee, Tandy UK.
Car driven: Volvo XC90.
Favourite film: Gran Torino. I Iove films and my favourite keeps changing.
Favourite song: All Together Now by The Farm.
Last book read: Winning by Clive Woodward.
Holiday destination: Borneo.
Most proud of: Having a go, searching for new challenges to unlock potential in people and places to test and stretch myself.
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Sunday 12 February 2012
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