WORCESTER city centre may have been hit by two major blows in the past week but there are still plenty of reasons to be positive about our local economy.

Last Thursday House of Fraser announced that its Crowngate department store would close down next year, and yesterday Byron confirmed long-held suspicions that its Cathedral Square restaurant will never open.

However, this was due to the failures of the two companies nationally and not a reflection on Worcester's economy – indeed, our city has repeatedly bucked UK trends when it comes to footfall by increasing the number of visitors.

Just look at The Perfume Shop, a flourishing national chain which has been doing great business in Worcester since opening on June 1, and Cathedral Square has been a big success despite Byron backing out.

And there are few other towns and cities which can boast so many successful independent businesses, such a range of shops – and so few empty units.

So let's be positive about our city. We've just had a Food Fest which was a huge success, and the units left empty by House of Fraser and Byron can be seen as an opportunity for new ventures.