Journal

For homeowners, one of the most frustrating parts of getting work done is often not the job itself but finding somebody available to do it.

A leaking roof may need attention quickly, yet established roofers can already have weeks of work booked. A builder may be interested in an extension but unable to start for months. A plumber might answer emergency calls while delaying larger planned jobs. A carpenter, plasterer or electrician may be difficult to pin down not because they lack interest, but because a small number of people are trying to service a much larger pool of work.

The phrase "death of the high street" has become so familiar that it can feel less like an argument and more like a diagnosis. A department store closes, a bank leaves, another national chain disappears from a town centre and the conclusion seems obvious: the high street is in decline and the process is probably irreversible.