The rebirth of Hanningtons

But in the 1980s the vast department store was well past its prime.

and the store, once known as the Harrods of Brighton, found itself stuck in a timewarp.

Although its most loyal, largely female, customers continued to patronise the store, Hanningtons gradually lost ground to the multiples in nearby Western Road and Churchill Square shopping centre.

Competition from out-of-town rivals, with lower prices and free parking, heaped on more pressure on its owners, the Hunnisett family who eventually sold the store to London property investor Regina Estates for more than £20 million in September 2000.

The following June, after 193 years of trading, time was finally called on the fading relic.

Now a flurry of activity in the first half of this year looks to have finally brought Hanningtons back to life.

In the last six months Kurt Geiger has just joined Mango, Benetton and L.K. Bennett to establish the eastern end of the development as a high-quality, fashion led enclave.

When Benetton moved in to the North Street frontage it marked a returned to Brighton for the Italian chain eight years after it quit its former store in Western Road.

Linda Bennett, dubbed the queen of the kitten heel, opened her shoe shop in June while fellow shoe designer Kurt Geiger followed in August.

But it's the arrival of the Spanish fashion chain Mango, which took 2,500 sq ft of groundfloor space in June last year, that's probably the most significant breakthrough.

Although it was not the first letting since the demise of the department store, it was the first one to a major retail player and probably acted as a magnet for other high class stores.

Tony Mernagh, executive director of the Brighton and Hove Economic Partnership, said: "There has always been interest in the site but retailers tend to circle each other waiting to see who will make the first move.

"I expect the rest of the North Street frontage will fill up quite quickly now we have a cluster of designer shops there proving it really is a viable place to do business.

"North Street and East Street are now characterised by upmarket shops which reflect how polarised the city has become. Western Road, which used to be the main shopping drag, is now the discount end of town."

Andrew Booth, from Hanningtons project managers Ellis & Partner, said the site was in a prime position for fashion retailers, particularly those aiming for the top end of the market.

A spokeswoman for Ollie & Nic said: "The prominence of the unit within the development and the proximity of retailers appealing to a similar audience, such as Mango and Lush, were important factors in the choice of location for the first Ollie & Nic. The shop has proved a huge success and a brilliant testing ground."

The company is to open a new shop at Bluewater next month.

It is still not clear what will become of the western end of Hanningtons, to the east of the Cheltenham & Gloucester Building Society, which consists of four large units.

The entire upper floor will almost certainly be turned into homes but, as yet, a planning application has not been submitted.

The rebirth of Hanningtons coincides with Brighton's growing reputation as one of the south coast's premiere shopping destinations.

In this regard, the development echoes the past because it was the city's ascent as a fashionable resort in the 19th century which fuelled Hannington's rise.

A revitalized store - albeit as lots of smaller ones - is key to Brighton's future as a retail destination. In a recent survey the city was placed 25th in a league table of shopping centres in the UK.

Thurstan Crockett, economic development manager at Brighton and Hove City Council, said: "Although it has been galling to see Hanningtons empty for so long it's great that it is starting to fill up.

"It's important for the city to offer a good retail mix and that's what we have with the independent retailers in North Laine, High Street names in Churchill Square and now some really top-end names in North Street."