A Marks & Spencer store had been a fixture in Broadmead, Bristol for many generations. It closed in 2022 due to changing shopping habits, after more than 70 years in the city centre. A Debenhams store opposite the building closed around the same time. With another local shopping centre, The Galleries, set to be demolished, many in the community worried about what the former Marks & Spencer store and the surrounding area would become.
Kathryn Chiswell Jones, from local creative arts charity Artspace Lifespace, said: “While there’s been a decline of people shopping in Bristol city centre, there are still a lot of people living in the area including students. The footfall is very vibrant.”
Artspace Lifespace specialises in bringing old buildings back into use for the community in Bristol – even taking on a former police station. But they had never taken on a department store. Artspace Lifespace collaborated with the Global Goals Centre to create Sparks.
Creating a cultural destination space
Sparks is a unique, interactive department store for everyone, based around experience and not just retail.
Jenny Foster from the Global Goals Centre said: “Sparks is so much more than just a shopping centre. We’re a one-stop shop for sustainability and creativity, engaging the public in a really practical way – without them having to spend money. It’s somewhere that they can explore in the city centre and hopefully learn something along the way.”
The building’s history as a department store has been captured through how it is presented. Sparks offers a Department of Gifts where you can buy ethical gifts from independent businesses, a Department of Fashion with second hand clothing, and a Department of Discovery offering events and education workshops to inspire learning and action on climate, nature and equality. There’s also a Department of Imagination with community hire space, a Department of Food and Drinks with a cafe – and so much more!
Kathryn adds: “We tried to figure out what we could do on the ground floor that would welcome people in, particularly those communities that might feel an art centre isn’t for them. If you look at the people coming into our building, it’s so diverse. It’s a place for the community that otherwise wouldn’t exist in Broadmead. It’s a place of welcome and a place of refuge.”
Building local opportunities through trading
Sparks worked with more than 50 local organisations and creatives to co-design the space, building an experience that truly reflects the needs and aspirations of the community.
Jenny said: “Every single part of Sparks is a collaboration – it involves hundreds of people. We’ve tried to give opportunities to people who wouldn’t necessarily have had opportunities, including migrant and refugee entrepreneurs.”
A trader, Calcifer Cole talked about the impact that Sparks has had on their business:
“When I started my little business in 2021, I was finishing university, and I was told by the head of my course that my work would never amount to anything. Within a month of trading at Sparks, my stock sold out, and now I’m one of their top three earners! It’s amazed me and given me so much confidence that I didn’t have before.”
By drawing people into the space and providing a diverse range of activities and services, Sparks is tackling local vacancy rates and bringing new life and energy back to the city centre. Sparks has also generated increased footfall and vibrancy for other businesses in the area.
Kathryn said: “Having more imaginative uses of high streets is going to be the way they survive and thrive. Exciting, vibrant projects invite people to an area and benefit local businesses.
“We’ve been told by the local Business Improvement District (BID) that they see Sparks as a real asset and catalyst for the regeneration of Broadmead. The fact that we’re offering something unique and experiential, rather than just another generic retail space, is helping to attract people back to the area.”
Sparks have also been told that their work has influenced the Bristol City Centre Local Plan refresh. The council has taken note of what they’ve created and is looking to include similar spaces into their future plans. Sparks is also working with other communities in Torbay and Newport to help them set up a similar initiative in either new or existing community buildings.
Sparks is currently confirmed to stay open until at least Christmas 2025. They have a rolling one-year lease but hope to remain in Bristol for the long term.
Learn about the communities reimaginig vacant department stores in their communities in our latest report Department Stories.
