Graham in the Media

Graham being interviewed live on BBC News (9 Jan 2014)

Graham being interviewed live on BBC News (9 Jan 2014)

Described by The Journal newspaper as “a cross between Mary Portas and Stephen Fry”, Graham is a regular contributor to TV, radio, newspapers and magazines in the North East and beyond, talking about issues as diverse as new retail developments, the changing high street, supermarket pricing and the fate of ex-Woolworths sites.

Graham is also regularly quoted by the national retail press, has been a judge of various business and retail awards, and has spoken at leading retail conferences and events, including the Spring Fair and Autumn Fair trade shows at the NEC, Pure London, and Co-operatives UK’s National Retail Consumer Conference in Solihull.

As an established freelance writer, Graham regularly provides provided insightful and engaging retail-themed columns for national publications such as Speciality Food Magazine, Co-operative News and the Sage Blog, as well as for the industry-leading magazine Retail Week. If you are interested in hiring Graham to write for your publication, please call (0191) 461 0361 or use the contact form to detail your requirements.

Here are some of the most recent mentions of Graham and Soult’s Retail View.

Columns

Graham with Speciality Food magazine. Photograph by Graham Soult

Graham with Speciality Food magazine

2014

2013

2012

  • Get connectedConfectionery 2012, p.26 (online marketing tips for sweet retailers and confectionery producers).
  • Traditional Ways, Modern DaysDairy 2012, p.18 (online marketing tips for cheese retailers and producers).
  • Appetising web contentSpeciality Food Magazine, March 2012, p.22.
  • Why the high street’s not doomedBdaily, 21 February 2012.

2011

  • Graham Soult on Poundland: ‘the new Woolies’Bdaily, 22 November 2011.
  • Graham Soult’s view on what makes a successful independent retailerBdaily, 17 October 2011.
  • Graham Soult’s e-commerce viewBdaily, 29 September 2011.
  • Graham Soult’s retail viewBdaily, 13 September 2011.

2009

Presentations

Presenting one of my seminars at 2012's Autumn Fair (3 Sep 2012)

Presenting one of my seminars at 2012’s Autumn Fair (3 Sep 2012)

  • Chester-le-Street Town Centre, presentation of findings from town centre audit, and the issues and actions arising, to Chester-le-Street Business Association, 4 March 2014.
  • Introduction to digital marketing, Spirit Catwalk, Pure London, 10 February 2014.
  • Independent retailer’s forum : Making changes that ensure ROI, Trends Theatre, Spring Fair International, Birmingham, 3 February 2014 (chairman of panel discussion)
  • The independent’s experience: starting up a new retail business, Talking Point Seminars stage, Autumn Fair International, Birmingham, 1 September 2013 (chairman of panel discussion).
  • A view of the current retailing environment, Co-operatives UK National Retail Consumer Conference 2013, Solihull, 23 February 2013.
  • Getting content with your web content, E-commerce & Social Media Stage, Spring Fair International, Birmingham, 4 February 2013.
  • Getting content with your web content, Talking Point Seminars stage and Fashion Accessories Catwalk, Autumn Fair International, Birmingham, 3 September 2012.
  • Life after Woolworths: What the current British high street can learn from the Woolworths experience, Woolworths Conference, University of Reading, 25 May 2012.

Judging

Stockton Town Centre Business Awards judges, including me on the left

Stockton Town Centre Business Awards judges, including me on the left

  • Middleton Grange Retailer Awards, organised by Middleton Grange Shopping Centre. Hartlepool, August to November 2013.
  • Middleton Grange Retailer Awards, organised by Middleton Grange Shopping Centre. Hartlepool, August to October 2012.
  • Stockton Town Centre Business Awards, organised by Stockton Borough Council, July to September 2011.

TV

2014

  • BBC News, BBC News Channel, 9 January 2014 (live interview with Annita McVeigh from the BBC Newcastle studio, discussing retailers’ Christmas trading figures).

2012

Graham on Look North (21 Sep 2012)

Graham on Look North (21 Sep 2012)

  • Look North, BBC One (North East and Cumbria), 25 October 2012 (talking to Sharon Barbour about the success of Newcastle’s Alive After Five initiative; live interview on lunchtime bulletin and pre-recorded piece on evening news).
  • Look North, BBC One (North East and Cumbria), 21 September 2012 (talking to Chief Reporter Chris Stewart about the owners of Metrocentre buying the adjacent Federation Brewery site).
  • North East Tonight, ITV1, 5 July 2012 (interviewed in the studio about the rise of single-price retailers such as Poundland).
  • Look North, BBC One (North East and Cumbria), 11 April 2012 (talking about the reasons for increased retail footfall in Newcastle).
  • Look North, BBC One (North East and Cumbria), 12 January 2012 (talking about the changing high street).
Graham on Look North (12 Jan 2012)

Graham on Look North (12 Jan 2012)

2011

  • Look North, BBC One (North East and Cumbria), 7 June 2011 (talking about Metrocentre’s 25th anniversary).
  • North East Tonight, ITV1, 14 April 2011 (talking about Metrocentre’s 25th anniversary).
  • Tyne Tees News, ITV1, 15 February 2011 (talking about Stockton High Street).

2010

Graham on BBC1's Inside Out programme

Graham on BBC1’s Inside Out programme

  • Inside Out, BBC One (North East and Cumbria), 6 December 2010. [more details]

Radio

2014

  • Neil Green show, BBC Tees, 17 June 2014 (talking about job cuts at Morrisons and the reasons for the retailer’s overall poor performance).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 27 May 2014 (talking about the performance and impact of Gateshead’s Trinity Square development a year after opening).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 28 April 2014 (commenting on the introduction of parking charges in Yarm).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 9 April 2014 (discussing the Redcar Beacon vertical pier and the lack of interest in its retail/business units).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 4 April 2014 (commenting on the state of the high street and the growth of discount retailers).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 4 March 2014 (discussing plans to continue the two-hour free parking trial and cut long-stay parking charges in Middlesbrough).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 18 February 2014 (talking about supermarket ‘deals’, following a new report by Which?).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 18 February 2014 (discussing the latest Which? investigation into supermarket pricing ‘tactics’, with Alfie and Gilly).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 15 January 2014 (talking about the sudden liquidation of indoor market operator InShops and its implications for retail tenants).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 10 January 2014 (discussing the performance of retailers and North East shopping centres over Christmas).
  • Jonathan Miles mid-morning show, BBC Newcastle, 9 January 2014 (talking about what the fate of ex-Woolworths stores tells us about the changing high street).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 7 January 2014 (discussing the fate of ex-Woolworths stores in the North East).
  • Shane O’Connor’s Breakfast Show, BBC Coventry & Warwickshire, 6 January 2014 (talking about what the former Woolworths stores in Warwickshire and Coventry have become).
  • Good Morning Scotland, BBC Radio Scotland, 6 January 2014 (chatting to Gary Robertson about what has happened to Scotland’s former Woolworths sites).
  • Good Morning Wales, BBC Radio Wales, 6 January 2014 (talking to Felicity Evans’ about what Wales’ ex-Woolworths have become, five years on).
  • 5 Live Breakfast, BBC Radio 5 Live, 6 January 2014 (talking to Rachel Burden about the fate of Britain’s ex-Woolworths stores, five years to the day since the chain’s disappearance from the high street).

2013

  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 23 December 2013 (discussing last-minute Christmas shopping and stores opening on Christmas Day).
  • Neil Green show, BBC Tees, 19 November 2013 (talking about supermarkets’ ‘misleading’ offers, from outside Morrisons in Bishop Auckland).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 12 November 2013 (talking about Terrace Hill’s plans for £55m of retail and leisure development in Middlesbrough).
  • Jon and Anne at Drivetime, BBC Newcastle, 2 October 2013 (pre-recorded interview, discussing self-scan checkouts, and trading results from Tesco and Sainsbury’s).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 27 August 2013 (studio interview, discussing the future of independent convenience stores and what they can do to thrive).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 27 August 2013 (interview in Gateshead town centre, talking about the performance and impact of Trinity Square, three months on).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 22 July 2013 (discussing the future of Newcastle’s ex-Jessops site, six months after its closure).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 19 July 2013 (talking about the £50m purchase of Middlesbrough’s Hillstreet shopping centre by NewRiver and Pimco).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 23 May 2013 (pre-recorded interview in Gateshead town centre, talking about the opening of the new Tesco Extra and Trinity Square).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 20 May 2013 (talking about the downscaling of Middlesbrough’s Western Gateway retail plans, and the current state of the town centre).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 14 May 2013 (discussing Eric Pickles’ comments about wanting “free parking for popping to the shops”).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 23 April 2013 (interview in Gateshead High Street, talking about the opening of Trinity Square in one month’s time).
  • Neil Green show, BBC Tees, 5 April 2013 (talking about the rescue of HMV, from outside the store in Newcastle).
  • Business Programme with John Atkinson and Joss Harwood, Radio Teesdale, 27 February 2013 (talking about Barnard Castle’s appeal as a retail destination).
  • Phil and Amy Breakfast Show (with Mike Hill), BBC Tees, 23 February 2013 (talking about Barnard Castle’s strengths as a retail destination).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 6 February 2013 (talking about the introduction of free 2-hour parking in Middlesbrough Council-owned car parks).
  • Phil Trow’s Breakfast Show, BBC Radio Derby, 23 January 2013 (talking about the closure of Midlands Co-op’s department stores).
  • Jon and Anne at Drivetime, BBC Newcastle, 15 January 2013 (discussing Capital Shopping Centres’ rebranding as ‘intu’).
  • Neil Green show, BBC Tees, 15 January 2013 (talking about the collapse of HMV).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 10 January 2013 (discussing the collapse of Jessops and the challenges retailers face from changing consumer purchasing habits).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 7 January 2013 (talking about retailers’ trading figures over the pre-Christmas period).

2012

  • BBC Newcastle, 24 December 2012 (talking about the last-minute Christmas shopping rush).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 20 December 2012 (discussing the growth of Christmas shopping online).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 18 December 2012 (talking about the pros and cons of free pre-Christmas parking in Northumberland’s market towns).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 14 December 2012 (discussing the proportion of annual retail sales that take place in the pre-Christmas period).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 19 November 2012 (talking about rules for street traders in Middlesbrough).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 2 November 2012 (talking about town centre parking charges and the impact on retail trade).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 10 October 2012 (talking about supermarket pricing and the impact of 2012’s wet summer).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 13 September 2012 (interview in Stockton High Street, talking about the town’s retail offer and what has happened to ex-Woolworths sites across the UK).
  • Jonathan Miles mid-morning show, BBC Newcastle, 6 Sep 2012 (talking about a Which? survey looking at “baffling” supermarket prices).
  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 22 August 2012 (talking about the future of the corner shop).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 16 August 2012 (talking about the changing grocery market, live from Newark-on-Trent).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 8 August 2012 (talking about the redevelopment of Newcastle’s Monument Mall).
  • Neil Green show, BBC Tees, 30 July 2012 (talking about PwC’s data showing a rise in retail insolvencies during Q2 of 2012).
  • Jonathan Miles mid-morning show, BBC Newcastle, 24 May 2012 (talking about supermarket prices).
  • Business Programme with John Atkinson and Joss Harwood, Radio Teesdale, 23 May 2012.
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 11 April 2012 (interview in Sunderland, talking about the city’s increased retail footfall figures).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 4 April 2012 (talking about food sales at discounters like B&M and Poundworld in the light of The Grocer’s ‘top 50 independents’ list).
  • Jonathan Miles mid-morning show, BBC Newcastle, 30 March 2012 (talking about Seaham’s Portas Pilot bid).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 13 February 2012 (talking about Justin King’s comments about turning high-street shops into “houses and classrooms”).
  • Mike Parr mid-morning show, BBC Tees, 5 January 2012 (talking about the January Sales in Middlesbrough).

2011

  • Ali Brownlee Breakfast Show, BBC Tees, 23 December 2011 (talking about Christmas shopping).
  • Jonathan Miles mid-morning show (with Ingrid), BBC Newcastle, 5 December 2011 (talking about supermarket prices).
  • Alfie & Charlie at Breakfast show, BBC Newcastle, 14 April 2011 (talking about Metrocentre’s 25th anniversary).
  • Nigel Thompson show, BBC Tees, 15 February 2011 (talking about Stockton High Street).

Retail press

2014

2013

2011

Other national and international press/blogs

Radio 5 Live interview with Graham Soult on the BBC News website (6 Jan 2014)

Radio 5 Live interview with Graham Soult on the BBC News website (6 Jan 2014)

2014

2013

2012

North East press/online

Graham Soult in The Journal's 'Most Influential' supplement (22 Nov 2013). Photograph by Graham Soult

Graham Soult in The Journal’s ‘Most Influential’ supplement (22 Nov 2013)

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

  • Enter the Enterprise ArcadeEvening Gazette, 13 December 2010.
  • Big freeze and cold comforts – Chris Jackson’s Blog, BBC News, 6 December 2010.
  • Experts: ‘Barnard Castle has one of most successful town centres in UK’ Teesdale Mercury, 24 November 2010.
  • Retail expert praises townTeesdale Mercury, 2 June 2010, p.7.
  • Store group pursues takeover bid for Robb’sHexham Courant, 28 May 2010, p.1.
  • Town must capitalise on prime Robb’s siteHexham Courant, 21 May 2010.
  • Store ‘limping along for years’Hexham Courant, 14 May 2010.
  • Retail blogger bags plenty of recognitionThe Journal, 25 February 2010.
  • Soult Makes His Name In UK Retail BlogosphereEntrepreneurs’ Forum News, 25 February 2010.

I am always happy to be contacted for comment by members of the media, or to discuss writing an article for publication – just use the contact form link at the top of the page, drop me a tweet, or give me a call (during office hours) on (0191) 461 0361.

Graham Soult. Photograph by Mandy Charlton

Graham Soult

If you need a high quality photograph of me, there’s one to download here.