IT has been a tale of two towns in the pandemic, with Leigh thriving and Southend taking a tough blow.

Businesses in the two towns recorded very different trading conditions.

Leigh - with on-street parking, fewer empty shops and an abundance of bespoke businesses, coffee shops and restaurants appeared to fare better.

But Southend town centre - which has about 17 empty shops, including the vast Debenhams in the Royals - the future is looking far more bleak.

Centre For Cities, an independent research unit and charity, found that Southend has lost 26 weeks’ worth of sales, and Basildon 21 weeks’ worth, since March 2020.

Since June 2021 a quarter of Southend’s city centre shop units - 24.9 per cent - have been empty. Basildon has suffered, particularly with larger stores, such as H&M, Next and Debenhams, leaving town centre.

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Leigh traders and business bosses say they have seen little drop or impact on trade, while shop managers in Southend also saw challenging conditions and many fewer shoppers.

Dawn Sherry, of Baggage World in the Royals Shopping Centre, Southend, has seen a drop of 30 per cent since last May, adding: “It’s been extremely tough as we are a travel-based company.

“We’ve been hit by the travel bans and changes during the pandemic. The drop is an extension of the ongoing issues for high streets. We’ve seen big stores go, such as Debenhams and Primark too. But we have brought in other lines, such as toys which sell OK and also the lifting of rules is helping very much too.”

Some sectors have remained buoyant despite the challenges.

Sara Welton , 61, of Sara’s Tea Garden in Old Leigh, said: “The Old Town has been busy and been absolutely packed most days.

“The area has so much to offer and attract lots of people, especially as we are dog friendly. We like to make as much fuss of the dogs as the owners.

“And it’s the way the customers like it as well.

“There’s a nice vibe in the town and we are seeing people all year around at the moment. That may change with the lockdowns easing, but at the moment we’ve not been hit too hard by the pandemic at all.”