A retail recruiter has disputed claims made by the boss of Next that the boom times are over on the high street.

Speaking yesterday, Next’s chief executive Lord Wolfson outlined a picture of sluggish consumer growth, with the impact of public spending cuts and VAT rises making next year particularly tough for retailers.

However, Russell Crowe, CEO of Kudos Recruitment Group, told Recruiter he took a more optimistic view.

“There are lots of retail organisations that are expanding on a weekly basis,” he says, citing Primark, Peacocks and Dreams, which is opening a store a week, as examples.

Crowe says the value sector is doing particularly well, the high end of the market is robust, while online has massive potential.

There continues to be a healthy turnover of staff in retail, adds Crowe. “Retailers are always competing to attract the best staff, in areas such as buying and merchandising, and central support, and that will never change.”