Soult's Retail View

Soon-to-be Wetherspoon’s (former Woolworths), Blairgowrie (11 May 2013)

If you like looking at shops and high streets, going on holiday to north west Sutherland, in Scotland – as I did earlier this month – isn’t necessarily the best choice.

The scenery is incredible, of course, but Spars and Costcutters are about as exciting as it gets retail-wise. For someone used to living in a city, the idea of the nearest proper high … Continue Reading

West Street frontage of Trinity Square (17 May 2013)

With just four days to go before the Tesco-anchored retail portion of Trinity Square opens (on Thursday 23 May), Gateshead shoppers are getting their first glimpses of signage and shopfit works, while the site as a whole remains a hive of activity. Alongside, the confirmed tenant list continues to evolve.

Since my … Continue Reading

Trinity Square’s High Street frontage (21 Apr 2013)

One month ahead of its 23 May opening, the names of several more tenants for Gateshead’s £150m Trinity Square development have emerged.

The most recent brochure for the Tesco-led regeneration scheme, dated September 2012, features … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths, Newton Aycliffe (5 Jan 2012)

Headlines:

• 214 ex-Woolworths stores visited, out of the 807 that closed following its collapse
• Of those, only 12 currently empty (6%)
• 7 continually empty (3%)
• 35 with two or more post-Woolies uses (16%).

Looking at my blog, you might be forgiven for thinking that I’ve forgotten about Woolworths in recent months.

It’s certainly true that the number of Woolies-related posts has slowed down a bit – partly due … Continue Reading

New Tiger store, Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow (22 Nov 2012)

If you follow my tweets you’ll know that I’ve spent the middle part of this week in Glasgow, taking time to explore the Ayrshire coast as well as the brilliant, fascinating, bustling city itself. While I love the sophistication of … Continue Reading

Marks & Spencer, St Helens (10 May 2012)

Whether it’s long-forgotten remnants of departed retailers, or 1980s fascias that chains have forgotten to update, there’s something satisfying about coming across bits of retail heritage in … Continue Reading

Promotion for Crawley store on Wilkinson website (15 Aug 2012)

Wilkinson’s “newest and most exciting concept store” has opened at 14-26 The Broadway in Crawley this morning (15 August).

Designed to “offer the community a more modern and interactive shopping experience”, the new store further evolves the modern look that Wilkinson has been rolling out across its estate, such as … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths (now Peacocks), Stowmarket (2 Aug 2012)

Alongside its new-look Clintons, the Suffolk town of Stowmarket seems to have come off fairly well from recent retail administrations.

Earlier this year, its ex-Woolworths managed to avoid also becoming an ex-Peacocks, while its … Continue Reading

Former Peacocks, Middlesbrough (7 Mar 2012)

Middlesbrough might have lost its Pure Party store in the fallout from Clinton Cards’ collapse, but as some retailers depart the town others are arriving – or expanding.

Just now, it seems that the once thing the town can’t get enough of is discount variety … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths (now Poundland and Mountain Warehouse), Cirencester (13 Nov 2011)

I often talk about how the fate of ex-Woolworths stores provides a fascinating ‘window’ on the changing high street, and the ex-Woolies in Cirencester (store #394) – which opened on 26 April 1930, 82 years ago today – is no exception.

Looking at the new occupants of former Woolworths gives us a flavour of … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths (now HomeFayre), Crewkerne (5 Oct 2011)

With a visit to Taunton on the schedule for later this month, it seems an appropriate time to write about the Somerset ex-Woolworths stores that I’ve already visited.

Back in August, I blogged about the stores that I’d checked out in North … Continue Reading

Tesco Gateshead mailout (13 Apr 2012)

Ahead of the Gateshead superstore’s closure on 22 April, Tesco has mailed details of its temporary store to local customers – but they may have trouble finding it using the map provided.

While the leaflet gives the correct address for the former Kwik Save premises, the attached map locates the store on … Continue Reading

Poundworld and Discount UK store, Swindon (2 Mar 2012). Photograph by Lee Sartin

Many thanks to Soult’s Retail View reader Lee Sartin, who has sent in a picture of the dual-fascia Poundworld and Discount UK store that opened in Swindon a week ago.

He … Continue Reading

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

Poundland, Hexham (19 Nov 2011)

Poundland opened the doors of its new Hexham store last Thursday (17 November) – and I understand that another Northumberland Poundland will be opening in Ashington soon.

The new Hexham store was having a ‘family fun day’ when I visited on Saturday, with the result that every child in Hexham town centre seemed … Continue Reading

Poundland fascia

One of the few empty shops in Hexham will soon be occupied again, with Poundland set to move into the former Heron Foods site in Priestpopple.

Though no opening date has been confirmed yet, store jobs have been advertised and a planning application submitted for “one internally illuminated fascia sign and one internally illuminated hanging … Continue Reading

Discount UK (former Woolworths), Newcastle (4 Nov 2011)

Poundworld-owned variety retailer Discount UK has opened its Newcastle store today, with stilt walkers and free sweets on hand to welcome shoppers to the former Woolworths site.

I dropped by shortly after the store opened at 10am, and it seemed to have got off to a … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths (now Store Twenty One), South Shields (22 Sep 2011)

Store Twenty One has opened its doors in South Shields today, meaning that the whole of the former Woolworths unit at 100-108 King Street (store number #104) is now back … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths, Hitchin (22 Sep 2011). Photograph by Steve Hack

Earlier in the week I mentioned how the former Woolworths in Newquay had been divided up between Poundland and Peacocks. Now the same process is underway in Hitchin (store #452).

Steve Hack sent me this photograph that he took in the historic Hertfordshire … Continue Reading

Former Woolworths (now Poundland), Truro (21 Feb 2011)

Having visited and photographed nearly 150 ex-Woolworths sites in the last three years (including 17 in the last week alone) – 50 of which are yet to feature in the blog – it’s about time I did some catching up.

Earlier in the year I wrote about two of the Woolworths stores in Cornwall that had disappeared long before the … Continue Reading