M&S has announced plans to open 'bigger, better' stores in former Debenhams sites across the UK with a £480m investment. The retailer’s scheme will create more than 3,400 new jobs across the country and will take over five vacant former Debenhams department stores.
M&S says it has identified sites for 20 new "bigger, better stores" to be opened in the next financial year. The new store pipeline for 23/24 includes eight full line destination stores in key city locations including a new 97,000 sq ft store in Leeds White Rose and a 70,000 sq ft store in Liverpool ONE, both due to open in Summer 2023.
Later in the year, other major stores will open, including a 65,000 sq ft store in Birmingham Bullring (Autumn 2023), a 96,000 sq ft store in Manchester’s Trafford Centre and a 98,000 sq ft store in Lakeside Thurrock, both set to open in Winter 2023. All five of these new stores will be relocated to former Debenhams sites – two new store locations are yet to be named, leaving the possibility open that Nottingham's closed Debenhams could yet part of the plans.
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According to the big-name brand, each has been designed with local families in mind, with shoppers able to browse in inspiring settings with wider aisles and a clear line of sight. With fresh market-style food halls stocking the full M&S Food range, spacious Clothing, Home and Beauty departments, brand-new M&S cafes, sustainable innovations such as Fill Your Own, as well as free car parking to make shopping more convenient for customers.
Alongside full line sites, M&S has planned investment in 12 new food halls in communities across the UK. These include a 16,000 sq ft store in Stockport opening in Summer 2023, a 12,000 sq ft store in Barnsley (South Yorkshire) opening in Autumn 2023, and a 9,000 sq ft store in Largs (a seaside town in North Ayrshire, about 33 miles from Glasgow) opening in Winter 2023.
In addition to its owned store investment, M&S has plans to extend its franchise model to expand its convenience offer. This will mean more customers can enjoy the M&S Food range, building on the existing successful franchise partnerships with BP, Moto, SSP and Costa.
Stuart Machin, chief executive of M&S, said: “Stores are a core part of M&S’s omni-channel future and serve as a competitive advantage for how customers want to shop today. Our store rotation programme is about making sure we have the right stores, in the right place, with the right space and we’re aiming to rotate from the 247 stores we have today to 180 higher quality, higher productivity full line stores that sell our full Clothing, Home and Food offer whilst also opening more than 100 bigger, better food sites.
"The out performance of our recently relocated and renewed stores, give us the confidence to go faster in our plan. Our investment in stores not only delivers a better experience for customers and colleagues, it boosts local communities with new job creation and will help us deliver a more sustainable estate in every sense.”
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