Commercial heritage of the historic centers. The case of the centenary shops of madrid, as a strategy to maintain cultural values in historic neighborhoods

Given the trend towards globalization at all levels, there are other bets that demand the transformation of geographical spaces while maintaining their original characteristics (predominance of small businesses, local commerce,or importance of local relations) and with positive economic consequences on local companies. In this context, commerce is considered cultural heritage and can be used as an instrument in the processes of revitalization of historic neighborhoods. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to explore how traditional commerce and its dynamization allows to create adifferentiated image of destination, increasing the heritage value and with-itconservation and sustainability in a territory. The case of the Centennial Shops of Madrid is analyzed, since the city, with a high number of centenary shops, is at the head ofthe cities that preserve a historical and cultural heritage of the first order such as these commercial restaurants and shops with more than a century. The municipal strategy of supporting the continuity of these businesses responds to discussions about the loss of identity, commercial standardization, or the increasing trivialization of the landscapes of the urban center due to the tourist influx of most historic cities. Thus, the Madrid City Council with the Dirección General de Comercio y Hostelería is carrying out actions to make visible and increase the protection of these establishments to facilitate their continuity, because they are not only beautiful and competitive shops, but also constitute a tourist attraction of the first order for the city of Madrid Dada la tendencia hacia la globalización a todos los niveles, existen otras apuestas que exigen la transformación de los espacios geográficos manteniendo sus características originales (predominio de las pequeñas empresas, comercio local o importancia de las relaciones locales) y con consecuencias económicas positivas en las empresas locales. En este contexto, el comercio es considerado patrimonio cultural y puede ser utilizado como instrumento en los procesos de revitalización de barrios históricos. Por ello, el objetivo de este trabajo es explorar cómo el comercio tradicional y su dinamización permite crear una imagen diferenciada del destino, aumentando el valor patrimonial y con ello la conservación y sostenibilidad en un territorio. Se analiza el caso de los Comercios Centenarios de Madrid, ya que la ciudad, con un elevado número de comercios y restaurantes centen