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Retail Recap: The important moves in April 2022

TheIndustry.fashion
29 April 2022

April has continued last month's positive trend of seeing new store openings far outnumber closures – a total of 26 to 2.

Whilst the month started off with a week full of snow and frost, the weather finally turned as Easter approached, with footfall numbers spiking as shoppers returned to the high street. As COVID is seeming like a distant memory, it's important to recognise that this past Easter weekend was the first since 2019 without restrictions.

Here is a list of the all the stores that have opened and shut this month as well as a recap of this month's Secret Shopper excursions.

Store Openings 

Reiss reopens refreshed Central London stores

High street fashion retailer Reiss has refurbished and reopened its Regent Street and Barrett Street stores in Central London, with a fresh focus on physical retail as post-pandemic footfall begins to “return to normal”. The 4,100 sq ft store at 10 Barrett Street, located in the architecture award winning Reiss Building, features an open-plan one-floor space with menswear, womenswear and accessories, and a private suite to cater for alterations and bespoke tailoring.

Icon Outlet at The O2 to fully re-open following Storm Eunice damage

The O2 announced that premium shopping destination Icon Outlet will fully re-open on 29 April 2022, just 10 weeks after the roof of The O2 suffered extensive damage from Storm Eunice. Icon Outlet at The O2 will re-open its last remaining closed stores, including Jack Wills, Nike, Levi's and Adidas, as well as opening a new 2,110 sq ft store with menswear tailoring brand Skopes.

In Pictures: H Beauty's new Bristol store

Harrods has opened its fourth standalone beauty store in the UK, with a new 25,300 sq ft space at Bristol’s The Mall Cribbs Causeway. Continuing the business's ambition to expand to locations beyond London, the new store joins H Beauty's existing locations in Milton Keynes, Essex and Edinburgh, with another planned for Newcastle later this year.

In Pictures: Uniqlo and Theory's new joint store on Regent Street

Uniqlo opened the doors of its hotly anticipated new central London flagship store on Regent Street, the same street where the Japanese fashion giant opened one of its first stores outside of its home market 20 years ago. This new location is also home to premium US brand Theory, which is a stablemate of Uniqlo in the Fast Retailing empire.

UNIQLO and Theory open major joint store space on Regent Street

Uniqlo and Theory Regent Street store

Decathlon to open new Liverpool store in former Next location

Sporting goods retailer Decathlon is to open a new 26,900 sq ft store in Liverpool's city centre at the end of April, taking over a former Next store. Located on Liverpool's Church street, the new store will take over the ground floor of the building, which has six floors.

U.S. Polo Assn. set to open first UK store at Cheshire Oaks in partnership with BMG 

The official brand of the United States Polo Association, U.S. Polo Assn., has opened its first UK store at the McArthurGlen owned Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet, in partnership with UK licensee Brand Machine Group (BMG). The 2,000 sq ft outlet store at the centre, which is located in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, will carry the American brand’s men’s, women’s and childrenswear.

In Pictures: Inside H&M's "world first" store at Trafford Centre­­­

H&M has opened the doors of a brand new retail concept at Manchester's Trafford Centre showcasing a number of new features and services and marking the retailer's commitment to investing in stores outside of London. The 29,202 sq ft store was opened on 14 April and features an open façade, removing its windows, which is world-first store design for the global fashion giant.

Kurt Geiger and Carvela open in Sheffield's Meadowhall

Kurt Geiger and its sister brand Carvela have opened new stores at Sheffield's Meadowhall shopping centre. The London-based footwear and accessories retailer returned to the centre on Upper Park Lane with an expanded range from Kurt Geiger London, KG Kurt Geiger and Miss KG for women, men and children.

LK Bennett to open new store in Hampstead High Street

LK Bennett opened the doors of a new 647 sq ft store in Hampsted High Street on 14 April. The new store follows an open-plan layout, with custom-built fittings and fixtures to enhance the customer shopping experience. The store will showcase its spring/summer collections, as well as carry-forward pieces from previous collections.

Rails opens second UK store in Notting Hill

Rails store in Notting Hill

Global lifestyle brand Rails has expanded its London retail presence with its second store opening in Notting Hill. Located on 173 Westbourne Grove, the 1,000 sq ft space houses both womenswear and menswear. The new store opening comes after successful opening of its Covent Garden flagship store in February, which saw Rails's most successful weekend to date this year across its stores globally.

Anthropologie to open store at Islington Square

Anthropologie is to open a new 4,500 sq ft fashion and homeware store in the mixed-use Islington Square development by early summer.  The American clothing and homeware retailer will be bringing its full range to its new store in the north London destination, which will include clothing, accessories, home and furniture, beauty and wellness, and gifts. It will be Anthropologie’s first European store in 2022.

Westminster City Council launches pop-up for emerging independent businesses

Westminster City Council has opened a pop-up boutique for 12 emerging independent businesses to give them the "opportunity to be part of the West End’s retail offer". The pop-up will take over unit 12 in Piccadilly Arcade, between Piccadilly and Jermyn Street, and will showcase a range of sustainable fashion, homeware design and creative brands who are all aiming to reinvent the industry they are in.

TAG Heuer opens new standalone boutique in Covent Garden

Luxury Swiss watchmaker TAG Heuer has today announced the opening of a new 882 sq ft boutique at 5 James Street in London’s Covent Garden. It’s the brand’s second standalone London store, joining the flagship boutique at 449 Oxford Street. The new store features TAG Heuer’s iconic heritage timepieces including the ‘Autavia’, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year.

Russell & Bromley opens store at Liverpool ONE

Russell & Bromley

Russell & Bromley at Liverpool ONE

Premium footwear and handbag brand Russell & Bromley has opened a 3,000 sq ft store in Liverpool ONE, marking its city debut and first store launch in 2022. Located on South John Street, the new site showcases Russell & Bromley’s extensive collection of luxury women’s and men’s footwear and handbags.

H&M to open revamped store in Glasgow's Braehead Shopping Centre

H&M is to open a new and updated store in Glasgow's Braehead Shopping Centre in May 2022, as the retailer steps up investment in both its physical and digital stores. The centre’s existing H&M store will move from its current space to a new 10-year lease on a ground floor unit, spanning 17,000 sq ft.

Scotch & Soda continues international expansion with 20 new stores in six months

Fashion brand Scotch & Soda is continuing its global expansion by announcing that it will open 20 new directly operated and franchise stores in the next six months, including a London flagship. In the last six months Scotch & Soda has opened 16 new stores around the world. The new 250 sq m flagship will be the brand's third UK store and one of its largest locations in Europe.

M&S to open larger store at Stane Retail Park in Colchester

M&S has announced its plans to open a new, larger store at Stane Retail Park in Colchester, featuring a new Foodhall, M&S Café, clothing and home departments. The expansion news follows previously announced plans from M&S to open an M&S Foodhall in Stane Retail Park, with the retailer now extending into an adjacent unit to create a new, larger store with 62,000 sq ft of trading space.

Lululemon grows UK retail portfolio to 17 as it plans to open first Brighton store

Athletic apparel brand Lululemon is opening its first store in Brighton later this month, a 1,700 sq ft space that will be located at 6/7 North Street, within Redevco’s Hanningtons Estate. The new store will showcase Lululemon's range of activewear products for activities including yoga, running and training and build on the brand's mission to create a community through a local grass roots approach.

In Pictures: Next opens first clothing, home and beauty department store

Next has opened its first store in the UK to combine home, fashion and beauty under one location. The new 94,478 sq ft department store is spread across three floors at the Atria Watford shopping centre. Next relocated its existing clothing store at Atria Watford, owned by property company SGS, to the retail unit next to its Beauty & Home store, which opened in October 2020.

Castore Newcastle

Castore store in Newcastle

Castore officially opens second Newcastle United store

British premium sportswear brand Castore has opened its doors to shoppers at Metrocentre Gateshead, unveiling the second Newcastle United FC store in its portfolio. Located in the upper Red Mall opposite Flannels, the 2,500 sq ft store offers Metrocentre customers and Newcastle United FC fans an extensive range of sports clothing and accessories across menswear, womenswear and kidswear.

Moss Bros to open 10 new stores this year as post-COVID recovery continues

Formal menswear brand Moss Bros has reported that it is doubling down on its physical store presence as it continues to recover from the pandemic and is looking to open up to 10 new stores. In May 2021 the business opened a new 4,600 sq ft flagship concept store on London’s Oxford Street, which it said was performing well. In March it opened a new concept store in Woking, Surrey.

Boutique childrenswear retailer Kids Cavern opens new store in Gateshead

Boutique childrenswear retailer Kids Cavern has opened its fifth UK store at the Metrocentre in Gateshead, Durham. The new 7,000 sq ft location will offer children's clothes from more than 120 brands including Balenciaga, Balmain, Burberry, Givenchy and Marc Jacobs, with prices starting around £20.

M&S opens Goodmove pop-up in Covent Garden

Marks & Spencer has opened a pop-up shop in Covent Garden, offering its latest Goodmove activewear range alongside a variety of free fitness classes and talks. Open until 23 April and located at 6 Slingsby Place, the Goodmove pop-up will showcase its spring/summer 2022 collection across womenswear, menswear and kidswear.

JD expands presence at one of Britain's biggest out-of-town shopping parks

JD has expanded its store presence in Leicester's Fosse Park, one of Britain's biggest out-of-town shopping parks. The sports fashion retailer previously occupied a unit in Fosse Park North, but then moved to new premises that are "double the size" in the new Fosse Park West development, creating 100 new jobs in the process. The 12,000 square feet space opened its doors on 2 April 2022.

Breitling opens first boutique in Northern Ireland

Swiss luxury watchmaker Breitling has opened its first store in Northern Ireland at Belfast’s Queen’s Arcade, which is currently undergoing a multimillion-pound refurbishment. Breitling has partnered with Lunn’s jewellers, a family run business of over 60 years, which is also located at Queen’s Arcade, for the new industrial-loft style boutique.

American Classics to relocate store from Covent Garden to Carnaby

Independent retailer American Classics is moving from its store at 20 Endell Street in Covent Garden, where it has traded since 1991, to 7 Newburgh Street in Carnaby. The Endell Street store will close on 15 May, and Newburgh Street will open on 17 May.

Coca-Cola opens fashion concept store in Covent Garden

Coca-Cola has launched its first flagship concept store in London. Located on Long Acre, Covent Garden, the new retail destination is the first of its kind in Europe, offering a range of limited-edition apparel collections, exclusive designer collaborations, gift items, and unique drinks.

Store closures

M&S closes Glasgow city centre store to focus on 'right stores in right places'

Marks & Spencer is set to close its Glasgow’s Sauchiehall Street store at the end of April, lowering the shutters on 87 years of history as the retailer looks to invest in the "right stores in the right places". The store, which is located in an Art Deco building and has been active since 1935, will shut its doors on 30 April 2022 after its closure was first announced in January.

H&M to close 240 stores and open 95 new ones in "growth markets"

Fashion retailer H&M has announced it will close 240 stores in "established markets" and open 95 new stores in "growth markets" following slowing sales in its first quarter. According to its latest financial results, net sales increased by 6% compared to the same period last year, a reduction from the 23% growth it recorded in the previous three months. The Swedish retailer operates around 4,801 stores globally.

Commercial Real Estate sales

European Commission gives Selfridges sale green light

Selfridges

Selfridges

The European Commission has approved the sale of Selfridges to the Central Group and Signa. The Commission's green light was needed because substantial parts of the Selfridges Group portfolio are located in the EU. It was confirmed that a definite sales agreement between the parties was signed on 23 December 2021.

Secret Shoppers

Secret Shopper: Norwich's historic Jarrold department store

For our latest Secret Shopper, TheIndustry.fashion headed to Norwich's historic Jarrold to see how this standalone department store is enticing customers and keeping the business alive today as one of the few remaining independently run department stores in the UK.

Secret Shopper: Primark's new stock-checking website

As part of TheIndustry.fashion's Secret Shopper series we gave Primark's new stock-checking website a try. The new site, which launched on 7 April 2022, does not allow customers to buy items online but aims to make their shopping journey easier by helping them understand which items are in-stock at specific stores.

Secret Shopper: Mango's new Mediterranean retail concept on Oxford Street 

Last year Mango closed its long-standing store on London’s Regent Street and opened a new, three-storey retail concept in a more advantageous position on Oxford Street. On a Tuesday afternoon in April, TheIndustry.fashion ventured out to put the new concept through its paces.

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