Marks and Spencer has said it is to shut another 32 UK stores, while at the same time moving into new out-of-town locations, but how will this strategy affect Aberdeen?
M&S currently operates two large shops in the centre of Aberdeen, a full-line store on St Nicholas Street and a food and homeware shop in Union Square shopping centre.
There is also an M&S Simply Food store in Bridge of Don, plus a few smaller petrol station convenience stores.
Elsewhere in the north and north-east, there are Simply Food stores in Westhill and Inverurie in Aberdeenshire, Elgin in Moray, and Inverness, Aviemore, Fort William and Oban in the Highlands and Argyll.
Inverness also has a full-line branch in Eastgate shopping centre.
There have been fears over the future of the St Nicholas Street store in Aberdeen – anchor to the Bon Accord/St Nicholas shopping centre – ever since Union Square opened in 2009.
M&S shut its branch on Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, in April, sparking further concerns about Aberdeen.
Wednesday’s results statement from M&S – warning of more closures UK-wide – revived concerns about a further exit of a major retailer from Aberdeen city centre, following the loss of John Lewis and Debenhams, among others.
Yesterday, an M&S spokeswoman said: “We haven’t made any announcements about any specific store closures this week.
“It’s worth bearing in mind the information shared in our results is about a long-term programme over several years to rotate our store estate which we keep constantly under review.”
While it’s anyone’s guess where the axe will fall, the St Nicholas Stree store has an advantage – M&S owns it so may be less keen to shut it in an uncertain retail property market.
And Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce chief executive Russell Borthwick is confident the city centre is “on the cusp of an exciting transformation”.
Mr Borthwick said: “I think we speak on behalf of everyone in this region when we say we want M&S to be at the heart of it.
“Having lost Debenhams and John Lewis, it is crucial that we retain this hugely important and much-loved business as an anchor for Union Street.”
In its results statement on Wednesday, M&S said: “We have made significant progress in closing 68 legacy full-line stores and 19 smaller food stores.
“We have also created a bigger food store format which can serve more of the family shop and offer click-and-collect services for clothing & home, and opened 13 new, more efficient full-line stores.
“We are now developing a growing pipeline of store relocations, moving from old multi-floor buildings, often with challenged fabric and poor access and car parking, to modern, well-located sites wherever possible.”
The retailer added: “Ease of shopping and fast access is critical to competitiveness, and in many cases we believe the town centre locations have lost impetus as a result of failed local authority or government policy.
“As a result, a high proportion, but not all, of our relocations are to the edge of town.
“The full-line store pipeline already has around 15 new stores planned over the next three years, including seven former Debenhams sites, and we expect this to build further. This will help enable a further 32 store closures.”
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