FOR those who ever doubted the value of the future for retailing in Malvern, now you know, it's worth £37 million.

That is how much The Hercules Unit Trust was prepared to pay to take over the Roman Way retail park, a big vote of confidence in the future of Malvern.

There is much talk of retail rents in Great Malvern town centre being too high, but such is the popularity of the out-of-town retail park that its new owners have seen the commercial opportunity to get their investment back with significant increases in rents.

The new Next store will pay nearly three times what Powerhouse was paying for the same space.

Some will bemoan the move away from the traditional town centre to retail parks but, whether we like it or not, it is the future. Most will welcome the plan for Malvern's retail park to be home to some of the big high street names in retailing, even if it means you can no longer find them on the high street.

Great Malvern's town centre, and those in Barnards Green and Malvern Link, still have a bight future.

In the case of Great Malvern, it just emphasises the need to move in a new direction. The centre can still be home to the many specialist shops which exist now, and should be home to many more, but it needs to become a tourist centre for the district.

The town's greatest asset, the Hills, should be properly linked to the town centre and then there is a chance it too could attract millions of pounds from a developer with an eye for an opportunity. The Post Office site has the potential to be a social centre for Great Malvern with bars, restaurants and live music to get the town buzzing in the evening.