Dudley has lost the most shops and retail units in the Black Country since the turn of the century while Birmingham has enjoyed a boom in bricks and mortar trading, according to newly released data.
Every part of the Black Country has suffered a downturn in the number of high street shops over the past 18 years with Dudley hit worst of all.
Data published this week by the Valuation Office Agency (VAO) compared the number of retail properties in 2000/01 with 2018/19, with Dudley showing a decline of 230 units.
The three other districts of the Black Country also saw drops in retail premises - Walsall (120), Wolverhampton (110) and Sandwell (60) - making an overall fall of 520 in the Black Country (11,060 to 10,540).
Stoke suffered a similar fate to the Black Country, losing 270 shops over the data period, falling from 3,000 to 2,730.
The VOA is responsible for working out how many non-domestic premises each area has so they can charge the correct business rates.
Local valuation officers compile lists of relevant properties and break them down into different categories, with 'retail' including not just shops but those properties that provide financial and professional services.
Birmingham Commercial Property News
The VOA data includes both in-use and vacant shops as both need to be recorded for rating purposes.
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A drop in the total number of retail units therefore reflects not just that shops have stopped trading but also the buildings they were housed in but are no longer available for use as shops.
In contrast to other parts of the West Midlands, Birmingham has welcomed a boom in offline retail since the turn of the century, therefore bucking a national trend and making it the fastest growth of any major 海角视频 city.
The city has 530 more shops and other retail properties than it had in 2000/01, rising from 10,610 to 11,140.
Manchester (220) and Derby (80) also saw growth whereas several other major cities suffered falls including London (1,160), Leeds (610), Liverpool (510), Bristol (350), Newcastle (300) and Nottingham (210).
Across England, there are 16,690 fewer retail units than there were in 2000/01 - a drop of 3.7 per cent.