The news that the averted Easter bomb plot was targeting shopping centres will have come as a sobering reminder to retailers and landlords about how vulnerable a position they are in.
Shops and shopping centres have been targeted in the past in high-profile attacks which have been possible because of the way they are laid out. They are designed to be open and inviting spaces where people can move as freely as possible without hindrance and as such make ideal targets.
Landlords will likely already have been contacted by Home Office officials after the Security Minister Lord West called for ramped up security measures in public places over the weekend.
While this is clearly important, it shouldn’t be read as meaning landlords don’t already take security seriously. Terrorism has been a threat for decades now and most centres have well-thought out policies for dealing with the worst-case scenario.
The difference between a shopping centre and many other public spaces, is that they are also commercial property.
Landlords and retailers need to ensure that they are ready for the worst and always prepared, of course, but they must also ensure that they keep their centres and stores inviting.
This is a difficult balance and presents a challenge design-wise that retailers will need to rise to if they aren’t to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
If a major loss of business from people staying away from covered malls is to be avoided, retailers and landlords need to prove to shoppers that they are up to scratch both design wise and in terms of security procedures so that if the unthinkable happens they are still safe.
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