M&S reveals 9 Lancashire locations for potential new food stalls

Marks and Spencer has identified nine new locations in Lancashire for potential new food stores as it looks to double its business.

The store chain has confirmed that 500 areas across the UK are on the new ‘potential location list’.

It says that unlocking new sites will help deliver the plan to modernise and rotate its store estate to a footprint of 180 full line stores and 420 M&S Food stores.

The company says it is particularly looking for large sites that could stock the full range of M&S Food, growing the target size of its food stores to an average of 18,000sqft.

The proposals will lead to a number of planning applications likely to go before planning committees across the county.

What are Lancashire sites?

The locations in Lancashire M&S is looking at for new stores are: Lytham, Garstang, Bamber Bridge, Chorley, Lancaster, Burnley,Rawtenstall and Ormskirk

Also this summer, M&S announced its acquisition of 12 Homebase sites which are set to become some of the largest M&S standalone Food stores in the UK – the first of which is set to open before Christmas in Cannock.

20 new or renewed M&S stores are opening between November and March, creating 800 jobs

With 20 stores opening or renewing before the end of the financial year, creating 800 new jobs, M&S is picking up the pace on renewing in its store estate.

M&S stresses it is opening stores with the right space in the right places as it looks to double the size of its food business and modernise its store estate.

All of these stores would be in the new renewal format with an extended range of M&S Food, wider aisles for bigger shopping trolleys and larger car parks for more family shoppers.

What they say

Alex Freudmann Managing Director, M&S Food said: “The strong performance of our new M&S food stores gives us the confidence to explore even more locations across the UK, from Elgin to Exmouth.

“With more than twenty stores opening or modernised before the end of the financial year, we are moving faster.

“Our team want new sites where we could open a large M&S Food store as we deliver on our strategy to bring the right stores to the right places and offer the best shopping experience, range and availability for our customers.”

What about Norcross and Cleveleys?

In the meantime Cleveleys’ Marks and Spencer food store is expected to close next year – but the company would not be drawn on any update in light of recent developments on the proposed new Norcross outlet.

In October, applicants LondonMetric Retail received planning permission from Wyre Council to construct a 21,500 sq ft retail unit. off Norcross Lane.

Marks and Spencer proposed to relocate from the existing and much smaller store on Victoria Road West in Cleveleys town centre, where the lease expires in 2026.

The scheme is expected to bring 50 new jobs.

However, the planning permission granted on October 2 for a food store was not quite so straightforward.

It was agreed to grant full planning permission but under the recommendations from the planning officer that it be subject to conditions and a S106 legal agreement to secure financial contributions from the applicants towards Travel Planning and to appropriately secure Biodiversity Net Gain.

In the event that a satisfactory Section 106 agreement is not concluded by December 23, it was agreed to delegate authority to the Assistant Director of Planning and Building Control to refuse planning permission on the grounds that the obligations which make the development acceptable have not been legally secured.

M&S was asked for further details on the fate of the Cleveleys store, including an anticipated timeline for its closure, but the company indicated that, because “the planning process isn’t complete yet” it could not comment further.