Shepherd’s Bush Market is currently open 6 days a week from Monday to Saturday, where butchers, fishmongers, fruit & veg, and grocery businesses are still open, offering great value for money and serving the local community during these exceedingly difficult times.
However, the market traders offering these food products count for approximately 15% of the tenancies in Shepherd’s Bush Market. The remaining 85% of the businesses have unfortunately been forced to close due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Despite this closure, the landlord of Shepherd’s Bush Market (Orion Shepherd’s Bush Market Ltd. / U+I Group Plc.) are still charging rent to all of the Shepherd’s Bush Market businesses and subsequently, this raises the question as to how these small businesses will continue to pay an accumulating rent debt despite being closed.
Many commercial landlords throughout Shepherd’s Bush, Hammersmith, and Fulham have shown compassion and commitment towards their tenants during the pandemic. Many landlords have taken the moral high ground and have demonstrated professionalism and astuteness by giving their tenants RENT SUSPENSIONS, which completely waives the tenants’ rent for several months.
Not only are these days an opportunity for all to support and help one another but more importantly, there is an urgent need to do so.
The Shepherd’s Bush Market Tenants’ Association (SBMTA) has asked U+I Group Plc. to match the exemplary actions of many other landlords and give a RENT SUSPENSION to the Shepherd’s Bush Market traders. U+I Group Plc. has faltered in doing this, and has offered to issue a rent deferral, which means that the market businesses are still obligated to pay the rent for this period of closure; however, payment of the demand will be due at a later time. U+I Group Plc.’s rent deferral may offer traders some peace of mind that U+I Group Plc. will not be sending their bailiffs and threatening to seize goods or charge additional High Court Officer’s Fees, as they have attempted to do so in the past.
On the 2nd April 2020, the Ward Councillor for Shepherd’s Bush Green, Cllr Natalia Perez wrote to U+I Group Plc. imploring them to give greater assistance to the long standing businesses of Shepherd’s Bush Market, writing: -
“I would urge you to please consider a rent suspension for all traders instead of a rent deferral. In the current Coronavirus/Covid-19 Crisis a rent suspension will potentially make a great difference between the survival of businesses rather than bankruptcy. I am concerned that a deferral just defers the problem to a later date. Our very valued traders and their businesses could be forced to shut for good if their rent was only deferred until after a later date rather than suspending it.”
Since the closure of the majority of the market businesses, the landlord has limited the opening hours and services of Shepherd’s Bush Market and subsequently, this invokes the legal argument that reduced opening hours may command reduced rents.
The landlord/developer who acquired the stewardship of Shepherd’s Bush Market in 2014 does not have a favourable rapport with the market traders, and unfortunately, it is felt that the traders have repeatedly been treated poorly over the course of the past six years.
U+I Group Plc. have expressed ambition to remove and relocate some of the market businesses located at the south end of the market in order to profit from another development on neighbouring land which is located to the east of Shepherd’s Bush Market. This development proposal is deemed to potentially cause much disturbance and inflict detriment to many of the traders. Of course, U+I Group Plc.’s proposals are strongly opposed by the local community and it is hoped that Hammersmith & Fulham Council will not entertain any further progression of U+I Group Plc.’s damaging schemes, especially whilst the Country is suffering.
Eyes are now strongly fixed on whether U+I Group Plc. will revise their position and better their commitment to the market businesses, whilst greatly improving their landlord and tenant practices.