Marks & Spencer (M&S) has committed £50 million to its North West region property portfolio.
If you are considering investment planning in Cheshire retail, M&S is launching a number of eight new or revamped stores in Warrington as well as Bolton and Blackburn, Speke and Formby, and Thornton-Cleveleys, in Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Lancashire respectively.
It is anticipated the stores will create over 300 jobs across the region. The store in Warrington’s Gemini Retail Park reopened on March 27 following a 10-month makeover and now features overhauled clothing, home, beauty and food hall sections. It will be joined by a nearby sister store this summer that offers a click-and-collect service.
Overall, the expansion programme additions will increase M&S’s retail space by 100,000 square feet, as part of a wider store renewal programme. The retailer’s longer term ambitions include targeting 180 higher quality and higher productivity full-line stores in addition to 100 enhanced food sites by the 2028 financial year.
In a statement, M&S property director Will Smith said the company’s growth plans involve maximising the shopping experience for its customers, while delivering necessary investment to support store transformation. The changes form a major part of M&S’s continuing store renewal and rotation programme.
The company currently has 62 owned stores across the North West of England, as well as 25 M&S stores located in hospitals and travel settings, such as railway and petrol stations. The Gemini store has been a feature in Cheshire for over 30 years.
