Soult's Retail View

Trinity Square, Gateshead (18 Dec 2011)

It may have taken over a year to get started following the Get Carter car park’s demolition, but building work at Gateshead’s Trinity Square is now proceeding apace.

Construction of the £150m development only … Continue Reading

Tindale & Stanton logo

A family-run bakery and supermarket supplier based in County Durham has been saved from closure.

Bakery Products Limited has acquired the assets and goodwill of Hobson Foods Limited (in administration), which traded as Tindale & Stanton. The new business will continue to trade as Tindale & Stanton Limited from its existing premises in Burnopfield, near Gateshead. Bakery Products already owns the Woodhead Bakery in Scarborough, which it … Continue Reading

Best Buy, Rotherham (3 Nov 2011)

Carphone Warehouse has this morning confirmed that it will close its 11 big-box Best Buy stores across the UK, subject to employee representative consultation, putting 1,100 jobs at risk.

The first store, in Thurrock, … Continue Reading

Point-of-sale promotion of the Asda Price Guarantee

Judging from the number of hits – currently 900+, and rising – many of you enjoyed my recent illustrated post about Asda’s Old Fold Road store in Gateshead, following its impressive transformation from a Netto.

While the increase in product lines and instore services … Continue Reading

Interior of Asda Supermarket, Gateshead (8 Aug 2011)

While some communities on Tyneside – among them North Shields and Wallsend – still have to wait a little longer for their Netto … Continue Reading

Netto, Birtley (24 Jan 2011)

The Co-operative Group has announced today that it is to acquire the Netto store in Birtley, Gateshead – one of the six remaining sites that Asda is required to divest following … Continue Reading

Netto, Old Fold Road, Gateshead (28 May 2010)

Less than six months after the carve-up of the Netto estate was confirmed, the Danish supermarket fascia is well on its way to disappearing from the UK retail landscape.

Haldanes – currently distracted by the … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths, Felling (17 Jun 2010)

This is my 200th blog post since starting Soult’s Retail View back in July 2009, so it seems only appropriate for it to bring together two of my favourite topics – Woolworths and Tyneside!

Regular readers will recall that I’ve written about all … Continue Reading

The iconic Tyne Bridge

The retail hearts of Newcastle and Gateshead are set to be connected by a new £200m shopping mall, running the length of the iconic Tyne Bridge.

The scheme will involve building a new modern steel and glass structure underneath the existing road deck, providing a covered mall route between the Newcastle and Gateshead sides, and affording panoramic views over the existing developments at Newcastle Quayside and Gateshead Quays.

The project is also set … Continue Reading

Wilkinson, Gateshead (14 Feb 2011)

Given that a significant chunk of Gateshead town centre is currently flattened and awaiting redevelopment, it’s pleasing to see one of the town’s biggest retailers investing in its store.

Along with Tesco, the long-established Wilkinson store in the Interchange Centre is probably the town centre’s … Continue Reading

Netto, Birtley (24 Jan 2011)

When Asda’s sale of 39 surplus Netto stores was announced a couple of weeks ago, I noted that Birtley – a small town close to here, within the Borough of Gateshead – was home to one of the eight remaining Netto stores that Asda is still required to divest by the OFT.

As … Continue Reading

New Poundland store, Gateshead (21 Sep 2010)

Returning home after a two-week holiday in Montenegro (more of which in due course), it seems like quite a lot has been happening within Tyneside’s retail scene while I’ve been away. 

As well as Asda’s plans for the old Byker Woolies getting the … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths, Bishop Auckland (6 Feb 2010)

When I blogged about the remaining vacant Woolies stores in the North East a few days ago, I’d failed to spot that yet another is about to be reoccupied, with Boyes – the iconic northern variety retailer – … Continue Reading

Screenshot of Fossil UK website (27 Aug 2010)

I was interested to read in Retail Week last week about the accessories and fashion chain Fossil planning to expand its UK store portfolio, but slightly perplexed to note that it “already operates shops in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Newcastle [emphasis added], Bristol, Glasgow.”

For someone who … Continue Reading

Clas Ohlson fascia

I’m not sure whether Clas Ohlson’s people are reading this blog, or whether – more likely – the obvious locations for new UK stores are fairly easy to identify.

Either way, I was interested to spot that the Swedish retailer has this week signed contracts for new stores in shopping centres in Cardiff and Norwich – following on from … Continue Reading

Gateshead car park (26 Jul 2010)

In my blog post about Gateshead’s Get Carter car park this morning, I suggested that “…it seems hard to believe that the car park is finally going to disappear from the skyline after so many false starts.”

However, it really *is* going. Demolition began this morning, with quite a few bits nibbled out by the … Continue Reading

Hoardings promoting the new surround the old (18 Jun 2010)

Since it opened in 1969, Gateshead town centre’s Trinity Square car park has been many things to different people, but always impossible to ignore.

To some, it has been an icon of the architectural Brutalism movement; to others, an eyesore that has blighted the Tyneside skyline. It is perhaps most famous, however, as a backdrop to the 1971 film Get … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths, Peterlee (12 March 2010)

Only counting the (33) North East Woolworths stores that closed down following the company’s 2008 administration, my quest to photograph the full set is nearing completion – with five more new ones featured in this post, only Berwick, Billingham and Stockton’s Portrack Lane are left to get.

However, the ever-expanding list of … Continue Reading

TK Maxx site at MetroCentre's Blue Mall

The trouble of spending too much of my time visiting town centres and shopping malls is that I end up with more potential blog topics than I ever have time to actually write about, accompanied by folders full of unused digital photographs.

One story that I’ve been sitting on for a while is the upcoming opening of TK Maxx at Gateshead’s MetroCentre, adding to a … Continue Reading

Peacocks logo

Peacocks has submitted a planning application for new signage at the former Zavvi site in Newcastle’s Northumberland Street, confirming recent rumours that the fashion retailer was being lined up to occupy the 17,000 sq ft store.

Published today, the application (2010/0159/01/ADV) is for the “display of internally illuminated fascia sign, internally illuminated projecting sign and non illuminated banner sign to Northumberland Street elevation and black vinyl graphic to … Continue Reading