News that Jenners department store on Princes Street will be sold at a knockdown price of £46m (€66m) to House of Fraser comes as no surprise. The awful truth is that the store's iconic status, as far as Edinburgh shoppers are concerned, no longer chimes with the fading image of its location.

Where the fine tweed and fashion boutiques once adorned the most famous shopping street in Scotland, there is now an array of outlets offering cheap books and tartan tat.