How Footasylum is balancing UK investment with international expansion

Footasylum is set to open a new flagship store at Trinity Leeds in April 2026, as the retailer continues to invest in UK bricks-and-mortar alongside an ambitious international expansion programme.

The 12,000 sq ft store will be located on the Lower Ground floor of Trinity Leeds, in the unit previously occupied by Superdry and opposite Mango. The opening builds on Footasylum’s long-standing presence in Leeds, following the strong performance of its former store at The Core shopping centre and a successful pop-up at Trinity Leeds last year.

Trinity Leeds is the city’s biggest shopping and leisure destination, home to more than 120 retailers as well as cafés, restaurants and an Everyman cinema. The new store will create 24 jobs and stock a mix of major third-party brands alongside Footasylum-exclusive labels, including Monterrain, Forena, Dripmade and Epic Kind.

To celebrate the opening, Footasylum plans to translate its digital-first marketing strategy into the physical space, hosting a programme of in-store events designed to bring its social media presence "from the screens to the streets". The retailer will also collaborate with local businesses and creatives as part of a wider push to connect with consumers at a hyper-local level.

The Trinity Leeds opening forms part of Footasylum’s ongoing UK store rollout. Recent openings include Cornmill Centre in Darlington, Croft Retail and Leisure Park in Bromborough, and Forster Square shopping centre in Bradford, underlining the brand’s continued confidence in physical retail under Aurelius’ ownership.

The UK expansion sits alongside a major international growth strategy. In December 2025, Footasylum signed a strategic partnership with Dubai-based Apparel Group, setting out plans to open up to 40 stores across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region over the next five years. The agreement marks Footasylum’s first move into physical retail outside the UK and spans wholesale, e-commerce and franchise channels across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman.

Footasylum has also been accelerating its European expansion. In November, the Rochdale-based retailer signed a deal with Cologne-based Mad Agency to drive distribution of its brands across Germany, Austria and Switzerland, covering labels including Monterrain, Zavetti Canada, Dripmade and Forena.

Shannon Osman, Head of Retail at Footasylum, said: "Leeds has always been a strong market for Footasylum. The response to our pop-up in the Trinity shopping centre last year, and our previous store at The Core, demonstrated clear demand for a bigger, permanent Footasylum presence in the city, and we’re delighted Trinity provided the right opportunity to do that.

"This store represents an important step as we continue our rollout across the UK and beyond. Investing in high-quality retail spaces remains central to our multi-brand, multi-channel strategy, and we look forward to further openings in the year ahead."