There are only three Habitat stores left in this country - which means a lot of retail spaces have been left that either need to be filled or have been taken over, reformed and refitted.

No 1: A beauty haven

There are only three Habitat stores left in this country - which means a lot of retail spaces have been left that either need to be filled or have been taken over, reformed and refitted. But how about this for a fairly radical rethink of a store that failed to make the remaining Habitat outlets cut - a beauty emporium?

The unit in question measures just shy of 16,000 sq ft across three floors and is in Liverpool. And at the moment, London design consultancy Four IV is working on transforming the former sofas, side-plates and storage retailer into a standalone beauty store for Harvey Nichols - scheduled to open at the tail end of this year.

It’s a mark of faith in both Liverpool and the power of cosmetics and beauty treatments that the department store operator is prepared to trial something it has done nowhere else at a time when consumer purse-strings are being drawn.

Yet there is a pretty compelling case for taking a high-end formula, known as the Beauty Bazaar, that Four IV originally created for Harvey Nichols’ Hong Kong outpost and repurposing it as a beauty store. Think of it this way. Liverpool is a place where, for some, levels of disposable income may be higher than in more highly leveraged parts of the south, and where the notion of dressing up still retains a high degree of currency. If times are tough, you may not actually wish to part with substantial amounts for an outfit before heading for that big night out, but the idea of a temporary makeover or buying a few bits and pieces that will help nature do its job might seem attractive.

Indeed, there is a fairly well documented urban myth that the amount that people will spend on beauty products may be inversely proportional to the health of the economy. Whether this is true or not, what Harvey Nichols is doing is bringing the opportunity to buy a little glamour without breaking the bank. And the broader point is that something that may seem a mite counter-intuitive has the potential to make the tills sing.

There are still opportunities to show real growth and carefully targeted niche retailing is possibly one of them. For Liverpudlians, the Christmas party season 2012 may prove more tempting than usual.

Topics