Editing Brighton (section)

==Economy==
In 1985, the Borough Council described three "myths" about Brighton's economy. Common beliefs were that most of the working population commuted to London every day; that tourism provided most of Brighton's jobs and income; or that the borough's residents were "composed entirely of wealthy theatricals and retired business people" rather than workers.<ref name="BBRH51"/> Brighton has been an important centre for commerce and employment since the 18th century. It is home to several major companies, some of which employ thousands of people locally; as a retail centre it is of regional importance; creative, digital and new media businesses are increasingly significant; and, although Brighton was never a major industrial centre, its [[Brighton railway works|railway works]] contributed to Britain's rail industry in the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly in the manufacture of steam locomotives.

Since the amalgamation of Brighton and Hove, economic and retail data has been produced at a citywide level only. Examples of statistics include: Brighton and Hove's tourism industry contributes £380m to the economy and employs 20,000 people directly or indirectly; the city has 9,600 registered companies; and a 2001 report identified it as one of five "supercities for the future".<ref name="NEB113">{{Harvnb|Collis|2010|p=113.}}</ref> In the past couple of years tourists to Brighton and Hove have fallen in numbers. Over 2016, day visitors to Brighton and Hove dropped by an average of 2,400 per day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/business/14794028.Day_visitors_to_Brighton_and_Hove_fall_by_a_million |location=Brighton |work=[[The Argus (Brighton)|The Argus]] |title=Day visitors to Brighton and Hove fall by a million |date=11 October 2016 |access-date=11 August 2017 |archive-date=11 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811143741/http://www.theargus.co.uk/business/14794028.Day_visitors_to_Brighton_and_Hove_fall_by_a_million/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-37619384 |work=[[BBC News]] |title=Drop in day visitors to Brighton and Hove |date=11 October 2016 |access-date=21 July 2018 |archive-date=31 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031194250/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-37619384 |url-status=live}}</ref> In August 2017, new figures for the year showed Brighton's tourism had fallen by a further 1 per cent on the previous year.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/15465791.New_figures_reveal_visitor_numbers_are_down_so_has_Brighton_lost_some_sparkle_/ |work=The Argus |title=New figures reveal visitor numbers are down so has Brighton lost some sparkle? |date=10 August 2017 |access-date=11 August 2017 |archive-date=11 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811144409/http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/15465791.New_figures_reveal_visitor_numbers_are_down_so_has_Brighton_lost_some_sparkle_/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Commerce and industry===
[[File:Brighton Centre, Kings Road, Brighton (from SE) (April 2013).JPG|thumb|Events at the Brighton Centre are important to Brighton's economy.]]

Brighton's largest [[private sector]] employer is [[American Express]], whose European headquarters are at John Street.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/communitypages/central_brighton/news/9915514.American_Express_ready_to_move_into_new_office |work=The Argus |title=American Express ready to move into new office |date=6 September 2012 |access-date=27 December 2016 |archive-date=17 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161117231854/http://www.theargus.co.uk/communitypages/central_brighton/news/9915514.American_Express_ready_to_move_into_new_office/ |url-status=live}}</ref> As of 2012, about 3,000 people work there.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/communitypages/central_brighton/news/9915514.American_Express_ready_to_move_into_new_office |work=The Argus |title=3,000 employees move to new Amex offices |date=6 September 2012 |access-date=27 December 2016 |archive-date=17 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161117231854/http://www.theargus.co.uk/communitypages/central_brighton/news/9915514.American_Express_ready_to_move_into_new_office/ |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Planning permission]] to demolish the old Amex offices and build a replacement was granted in 2009, and work started in March 2010. Other major employers include [[Lloyds Bank]], [[Legal & General]], [[Asda]] (which has hypermarkets at [[Hollingbury]] and [[Brighton Marina]]), [[Brighton & Hove (bus company)|Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company]] and call-centre operator Inkfish<!-- Don't wikilink this -->.<ref name="NEB113" /> In 2012, it was reported that about 1,500 of [[Gatwick Airport]]'s 21,000 workers lived in the city of Brighton and Hove.<ref name="Argus-11122012">{{cite news |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/10100845.Thousands_of_jobs_at_Gatwick/ |title=Thousands of jobs at Gatwick |date=11 December 2012 |work=The Argus |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-date=24 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224115327/http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/10100845.Thousands_of_jobs_at_Gatwick/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Brighton is a popular destination for conferences, exhibitions and trade fairs, and has had a purpose-built conference centre—the [[Brighton Centre]]—since 1977. Direct income from the Brighton Centre's 160 events per year is £8&nbsp;million,{{NoteTag|2009 figures.<ref name="NEB56" />}} and a further £50&nbsp;million is generated indirectly by visitors spending money during their stay. Events range from political party conferences to concerts.<ref name="NEB56">{{Harvnb|Collis|2010|p=56.}}</ref>

{{multiple image
| align             = right
| image1            = Sussex House Building, Hollingbury Industrial Estate, Brighton (December 2012).JPG
| width1            = 200
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| image2            = Exion 27 Building, Hollingbury Industrial Estate, Brighton (December 2012).JPG
| width2            = 200
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| caption2          = 
| footer            = The Hollingbury Industrial Estate has large industrial, commercial and retail buildings such as Sussex House (left) and Exion 27 (right).
}}

The Hollingbury Industrial Estate is one of the largest such facilities in Brighton; in its early days about 6,000 people were employed, principally in industrial jobs, but in the late 20th and early 21st centuries its focus has switched to commercial and retail development,<ref name="BB-990853">{{cite web |url=http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20110409.990853.htm |title=IKEA fails to get Hollingbury site |date=9 April 2011 |publisher=Brighton & Hove Economic Partnership |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923194551/http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20110409.990853.htm |archive-date=23 September 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> limiting Brighton's potential for industrial growth. Brighton Corporation laid out the estate on {{cvt|18|acre|ha}} of land around Crowhurst Road in 1950. By 1956, large-scale employment was provided at a bakery, a typewriter factory and a machine tools manufacturer among others. Most of the large factories closed during the recessions of the 1980s and 1990s, employment fell to 1,000, and structural changes started in the mid-1980s with a move towards small-scale industrial units (the Enterprise Estate was finished in October 1985) and then retail warehouses. [[Asda]]'s superstore opened in November 1987, [[MFI (retailer)|MFI]] followed two years later, and other retail units were built in the 1990s.<ref name="NEB149–150">{{Harvnb|Collis|2010|pp=149–150.}}</ref> Two large headquarters buildings were vacated in quick succession when British Bookshops left in March 2011<ref name="BB-451248">{{cite web |url=http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20110320.451248.htm |title=British Bookshops warehouse on the market |date=20 March 2011 |publisher=Brighton & Hove Economic Partnership |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923194549/http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20110320.451248.htm |archive-date=23 September 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[The Argus (Brighton)|''The Argus'']] newspaper moved out of its headquarters in 2012—although the [[Brighton & Hove (bus company)|Brighton & Hove Bus and Coach Company]] signed a contract to move its 1,250 employees into the latter building.<ref name="BB-398183">{{cite web |url=http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20120601.398183.htm |title=Hove bus garage move offers a real win-win prize |date=1 June 2012 |publisher=Brighton & Hove Economic Partnership |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120809035859/http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20120601.398183.htm |archive-date=9 August 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Brighton has a high density of businesses involved in the media sector, particularly digital or "[[new media]]", and since the 1990s has been referred to as "Silicon Beach".<ref name="TechCrunch-SB">{{cite web |url=https://techcrunch.com/2011/09/22/brightons-silicon-beach-tech-cluster-finally-breaks-shore/ |title=Brighton's Silicon Beach tech cluster finally breaks shore |last=Munford |first=Monty |website=TechCrunch |date=22 September 2011 |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131127203820/http://techcrunch.com/2011/09/22/brightons-silicon-beach-tech-cluster-finally-breaks-shore/ |archive-date=27 November 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> By 2007, over 250 [[new media]] business had been founded in Brighton. [[Brandwatch]] is a [[Social media measurement|social media monitoring company]] based in offices near Brighton station. Computer game design company [[Black Rock Studio]] was founded in 1998 and was taken over by [[Disney Interactive Studios]],<ref name="NEB113"/><ref name="TechCrunch-SB"/> who closed it down in 2011.<ref name="Eurogamer">{{cite web |url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-07-01-split-second-dev-black-rock-to-close |title=Split/Second dev Black Rock to close |last=Purchese |first=Robert |website=[[Eurogamer]] |date=1 July 2011 |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224102430/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-07-01-split-second-dev-black-rock-to-close |archive-date=24 December 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Gamer Network, whose portfolio of websites relating to computer gaming (including [[Eurogamer]]) and creative industries was founded in 1999, is based in Brighton.<ref name="GamerNetwork">{{cite web |url=http://www.gamer-network.net/ |title=Gamer Network |year=2013 |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131124180055/http://www.gamer-network.net/ |archive-date=24 November 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

By the early 21st century, the market for office accommodation in the city was characterised by fluctuating demand and a lack of supply of high-quality buildings. As an example, the Trafalgar Place development ({{circa}} 1990), "now considered a prime office location", stood partly empty for a decade.<ref name="TBS-9.2.2">{{cite report |url=http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/sites/brighton-hove.gov.uk/files/downloads/ldf/Tall_Buildings_Study_Final.pdf |title=Brighton & Hove Tall Buildings Study |publisher=Brighton & Hove City Council (in association with Gillespies and GVA Grimley) |date=October 2003 |edition=Issue C |section=§. 9.2.2: Brighton Office Market |page=28 |access-date=22 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224112141/http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/sites/brighton-hove.gov.uk/files/downloads/ldf/Tall_Buildings_Study_Final.pdf |archive-date=24 December 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Exion 27 (built in 2001), a high-tech, energy-efficient office development at [[Hollingbury]], remained empty for several years and is still not in commercial use: it houses some administrative departments of the [[University of Brighton]]. It was Brighton's first ultramodern commercial property and was intended for mixed commercial and industrial use, but its completion coincided with a slump in demand for high-tech premises.<ref name="BB-772119">{{cite web |url=http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20040721.772119.htm |title=Change of Use for Exion 27 indicates planning flexibility? |date=21 July 2004 |publisher=Brighton & Hove Economic Partnership |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224095619/http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20040721.772119.htm |archive-date=24 December 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Argus-6703608">{{cite news |title=Exion won't be empty for much longer |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/archive/2005/06/16/6703608.Exion_won_t_be_empty_for_much_longer/?ref=arc |work=The Argus |date=16 June 2005 |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219021922/http://www.theargus.co.uk/archive/2005/06/16/6703608.Exion_won_t_be_empty_for_much_longer/?ref=arc |archive-date=19 December 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Retail and shopping===
Brighton is well known for its high number of independent shops, which add to the character of the city.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Brighton Lanes – Shopping Review |url=https://www.cntraveler.com/shops/brighton/brighton-lanes |access-date=2023-05-19 |website=Condé Nast Traveler |language=en-US}}</ref>

Walking from Brighton station towards the seafront, first, is the [[North Laine]] area, stretching from Trafalgar Street, Kensington Gardens, Sydney Street, Gardner Street and Bond Street and is mostly pedestrianised. It is a retail, leisure and the residential area immediately north of the Lanes. Its name derives from the Anglo-Saxon "Laine" meaning "fields",{{citation needed|date=May 2023}} although the misnomer "North Lanes" is often used to describe the area. The North Laine contains a mix of businesses dominated by cafés, bars, theatres, and over 400 shops independent and avant-garde shops including an erotic shop and indoor flea markets.
[[File:The Lanes, Brighton - geograph.org.uk - 633351.jpg|thumb|The Lanes is a tourist attraction occupied by small independent shops.]]

[[The Lanes]] which is characterised by a labyrinth of narrow alleyways form a retail, leisure and residential area near the seafront, following the street pattern of the original fishing village. The Lanes contain predominantly clothing stores, jewellers, antique shops, restaurants and pubs.

[[Churchill Square (Brighton and Hove)|Churchill Square]] is a shopping centre with a floor space of {{cvt|470000|ft2|m2}} and over 80 shops, several restaurants and 1,600 car-parking spaces.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.churchillsquare.co.uk/index.php?id=271 |title=Churchill Square Shopping Centre: Churchill Square Food |access-date=20 August 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041204134551/http://www.churchillsquare.co.uk/index.php?id=271 |archive-date=4 December 2004}}</ref> It was built in the 1960s as an open-air, multi-level pedestrianised shopping centre, but was rebuilt and enlarged in 1998 and is no longer open-air. Further retail areas include Western Road and London Road, the latter of which is undergoing extensive regeneration in the form of new housing and commercial properties.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/planning/major-projects-planning/london-road-regeneration |title=London Road Regeneration |website=Brighton and Hove City Council |access-date=7 April 2015 |archive-date=14 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150414023455/http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/planning/major-projects-planning/london-road-regeneration |url-status=live}}</ref>

There are two weekly flea market / bootfairs in Brighton on Sunday mornings, one at Brighton Marina on the top open-air level of the carpark, and another at [[Brighton Racecourse]].