Britain’s upmarket supermarket group Waitrose is understood to be finalising an £800m investment plan that could see the opening of around 50 new UK stores over the next five years.
The retailer is thought to be putting the finishing touches to its spending plans this month before being given the go-ahead by parent company – the John Lewis Partnership. Ten new sites have already been secured for development next year.
In addition, the company has decided to launch its new-look store format – first tried and tested at its Marylebone High Street branch in London – throughout the rest of its 183 nationwide stores .
Next month, Central London will also see the launch of a new food hall at the John Lewis department store in Oxford Street, along with the opening of a 25,000 sq ft Waitrose store on Finchley Road.
The new food hall will represent an important milestone for the John Lewis Partnership, as it will be the first time that both Waitrose and John Lewis brands have been bought together for retail in the same place.
John Lewis have stated that if successful, the format could be introduced in other John Lewis stores in city centres across the UK, such as the up-and-coming Cardiff branch, which is due to open in 2009.
The new wave of plans and proposals are all part of a grand plan to boost sales at Waitrose to £8 billion over the next decade.
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