Bosses at a leading shopping centre have hailed a “brilliant summer” as its shops, restaurants and leisure venues welcomed in more than four million visitors. The St Stephen’s shopping centre in Hull city centre has more than retail units offering major high street names alongside a number of restaurants and a cinema.
The centre has now toasted high footfall over the holidays as it prepares for a busy autumn and festive season. It comes as the centre – which is owned by real estate agent British Land – publishes accounts for the year ended March 2026, highlighting a strong year.
The UK High Street has taken a hammering in recent years, with rising energy, wages and other costs being compounded by rising internet sales, leading to the collapse of a number of big names including The Original Factory Shop, Quiz and Claire’s Accessories, alongside scores of small independent retailers struggling to keep on top of costs.
However, St Stephen’s has bucked national trends to operate at high occupancy levels, with big name brands such as H&M, Schuh, Flannels and New Look helping to draw in thousands of shoppers on a daily basis.
It hailed the success of a number of initiatives, including Alive After Five, a summer-long scheme which struck a chord with the after-work crowd. The centre staged a live music series to bring evening entertainment to the heart of the city, featuring a rotating line-up of local acoustic performers for visitors looking to unwind, dine and socialise after work.
Each event featured sets from up-and-coming solo artists or duos between 5.30pm and 7pm, located on the centre’s first-floor terrace, opposite Nando’s and Prezzo. A second Chopstix noodle bar also recently opened inside St Stephen’s Shopping Centre, in June of this year. The restaurant gave free food away to first customers. In July, the Burger King eaterie also unveiled a new look, giving away 1,000 free Whopper or Chicken Royale burgers to lucky customers on its relaunch day.
Meanwhile, accounts for the shopping centre show revenues were £10.7m, down from £11.65m, but pre-tax profits were up from £4.9m to £6.6m. Fixed asset figures were also up, showing the centre properties are now worth £54.4m, up from £52.6m.
Jim Harris, centre manager at St Stephen’s, said: “We’re proud of the role St Stephen’s has at the heart of Hull and the city’s community and we’re always working hard alongside our retailers to host events and make the centre an environment locals want to return to again and again. We’re pleased to be enjoying another great year, with almost all of our units occupied or under offer, allowing us to offer a strong selection of retailers, restaurants, and leisure facilities for our visitors.
“We’ve had a brilliant summer, with highlights including our Alive After Five music series which helped the centre welcome over four million visitors over the 20-week programme. These free concerts provided weeknight entertainment while supporting emerging local talent. As we look towards the rest of the year, there’s plenty more to come and we’re excited to share more information on our Christmas celebrations closer to the time.”
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