Plans have been submitted for Marks and Spencer to open a new 83,000 sq ft flagship store in city centre. The retailer will be relocating from its current site at Stall Street into the former Debenhams building at 17 Southgate Place. The move totals a £17m investment by the retailer, allowing it to offer the very best shopping experience for its customers, and guarantee a future for M&S in Bath.
The new store will feature M&S Food and the retailer’s extensive Clothing & Beauty ranges from the show-stopping location. The retailer said the move is part of its strategy to make sure it has the right stores in the right place. Formal plans for the massive scheme have now been submitted to Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Staff at the current Stall Street store will have the opportunity to relocate to the new store and the Stall Street store will continue trading until the SouthGate store is ready to open. The retailer has said it will work with B&NES Council on the future use of the current M&S store. The plans for minor alterations to the ground floor façade involve closing four entrances, to be replaced by glazing, and creating four new entrances.
A heritage statement with the application says: “The proposed development is considered to have no impact on the designated heritage assets through the potential extremely minor change to their setting.” M&S CEO Stuart Machin, who announced the plans in response to a shareholder question, had previously said: “We want to offer the best possible shopping experience for customers every single time they shop with us. “This new £17m investment in a flagship Bath store means we can deliver on that promise and secure M&S’ future in the city.
Our store rotation strategy is all about making sure we can showcase the very best of M&S – and that touch of M&S magic – from stores which excite and inspire. “We’ve seen great results so far where we have relocated stores, in city centres like Liverpool and Birmingham, helping us to attract new customers and giving us the confidence to go faster with the strategy.” Darren Richards, Head of Real Estate at British Land, commented: “SouthGate’s prominent city centre location and strong national transport links create a compelling offer for our occupiers, and following this letting we are delighted that the scheme is now fully let.
“Marks and Spencer is a great retailer with whom we continue to work closely as they expand their offer across our retail portfolio. They will be a brilliant addition to the strong lineup at SouthGate.” Bath and North East Somerset Council will determine the fate of the application at a later date.
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