ACS publish Rural Shop Report 2021

IRC member ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has published the Rural Shop Report 2021, which provides key insights into the social and economic contributions of the rural shop sector, including profiles of the entrepreneurs that run rural shops, the investments they make and services they provide for the community.

Rural shops bring valued access to a wide range of products, services and employment opportunities and have invested £197 million over the past year. The report has found there are 17,175 rural convenience stores in mainland UK, employing over 126,000 people. 79% of rural convenience stores are owned and operated by independent retailers and most (54%) trade in isolated locations where no other business trades.

This means rural shops are often the only physical grocery and service centre for a village or group of villages, and thousands have invested in home delivery services during the pandemic to reach self-isolating and vulnerable customers. One-in-five rural consumers depend on their local shop more now than a year ago and rural consumers rank local shops as the most essential service for their local area.

Useful links

• Find a shop
  
• Best Small Shops competition
  
• Jobs board
  

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