* You are viewing Posts Tagged ‘Ventura Park’

Lichfield gets a boost as Debenhams takes over city’s ex-TJ Hughes

Graham Soult August 21, 2012 Department Stores, Property, Shopping Centres 4 Comments

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TJ Hughes, Lichfield, prior to closure (19 Mar 2010). Photograph by Graham Soult

TJ Hughes, Lichfield, prior to closure (19 Mar 2010)

The confirmation that Debenhams will be opening up in Lichfield’s former TJ Hughes store in March 2013 is great news for the city, and should give a big footfall boost to neighbouring retailers.

The … Continue Reading

Interview: Isabel Macdonald, Branch Manager, John Lewis at Home Tamworth

Graham Soult October 14, 2011 Department Stores, Home and DIY, Online, Property, Retail Parks 5 Comments

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Isabel Macdonald outside her new store

Isabel Macdonald outside her new store

Tamworth’s new John Lewis at Home opened its doors on Wednesday (12 October), eight months after I broke the news of its impending arrival.

The 42,000 sq ft shop at the edge-of-town Ventura Park is John Lewis’s sixth in the ‘at Home’ format, following the opening of stores in Poole, Croydon, Swindon (which I … Continue Reading

As Stratford City opens, I check out John Lewis’s answers to the lack of other new schemes

Graham Soult September 13, 2011 Department Stores, Property, Shopping Centres 6 Comments

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John Lewis fascia. Photograph by Graham Soult

John Lewis fascia

As the vast Westfield Stratford City opens its doors today, it’s little wonder that most of Twitter’s retail commentators seem to have decamped to east London. With 300 stores (though not yet all open) and a floor area of 1.9m sq ft (177,000 sqm), the opening of “Europe’s largest urban shopping … Continue Reading

John Lewis Tamworth takes shape

Graham Soult June 17, 2011 Home and DIY, Property, Retail Parks 4 Comments

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John Lewis Tamworth (17 Jun 2011). Photograph by Graham Soult

John Lewis Tamworth (17 Jun 2011)

Following the confirmation, in April, that John Lewis will indeed be opening one of its ‘At Home’ stores in Tamworth, work on site seems to be proceeding rapidly ahead of the Ventura Park store’s planned … Continue Reading

Is John Lewis coming to Tamworth?

Graham Soult February 16, 2011 Department Stores, Property, Retail Parks 3 Comments

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John Lewis logo. Photograph by Graham Soult

John Lewis logo

No, don’t choke on your cornflakes… that’s a serious question.

My interest was piqued last month when the Tamworth Herald ran a story under the headline ”Striking design’ of unit to be built next to Herald offices’, on the town’s ever-growing Ventura Retail Park.

In it, the piece gave a few more details about … Continue Reading

Morrisons to acquire Tamworth’s Netto store

Graham Soult January 13, 2011 Retail History, Supermarkets 4 Comments

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Morrisons store. Photograph by Graham Soult

Morrisons store

The Netto store in my old hometown of Tamworth is one of 16 sites that Morrisons is set to acquire following Asda’s purchase of the Netto UK business. The stores are among 47 that the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has required Asda to sell to competitors, to avoid a … Continue Reading

Peacocks flies into Tamworth’s Ankerside centre

Graham Soult August 06, 2010 Fashion Stores, Property, Retail History, Retail Parks, Shopping Centres 4 Comments

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Mall plan showing Peacocks (screenshot from 4 Aug 2010)

Mall plan showing Peacocks (screenshot from 4 Aug 2010)

I was interested to find out a few days ago that the fashion retailer Peacocks will soon be opening a store in my old home town of Tamworth, taking a prime spot within the town centre’s Ankerside mall.

Given that jobs in the store have been being advertised since June, and with the store … Continue Reading

Tamworth Market: the worst street market in Britain?

Graham Soult January 26, 2010 Market Towns, Property 7 Comments

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George Street, Tamworth (24 Dec 2009)

George Street, Tamworth (24 Dec 2009)

Take a look at the photograph above, captured in Tamworth’s main shopping street just before Christmas. Now, from a retailing point of view, see if you can work out what’s wrong with that scene.

To the right of the man in the photograph are some of Tamworth’s permanent shops – the lifeblood of the town centre. To the left of him are the backs of market stalls, … Continue Reading

Woolies Winter Wonderland…

Graham Soult January 04, 2010 Property, Retail History, Shopping Centres, Woolworths 15 Comments

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Shot from 1998 'Woolies Winter Wonderland' TV ad

Shot from 1998 'Woolies Winter Wonderland' TV ad

…That was the theme of Woolworths’ 1998 Christmas TV advertisement, in the heady, Tellytubby days when, as the ad reminds us, everyone wanted a Talking Po.

This festive season, the incessant snow and ice has certainly made it a Winter Wonderland in the various town centres that I visited. However, 2009 has, of course, been the first Christmas without Woolies on the … Continue Reading