* You are viewing Posts Tagged ‘Whitley Bay’

B&M Bargains heads to Burton – but where next?

Graham Soult February 25, 2011 Property, Shopping Centres, Variety Stores, Woolworths 5 Comments

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B&M fascia

Many thanks to Lee Dymond and Martin, who both emailed me about the news of B&M Bargains opening in the former Woolworths store in Burton, Staffordshire. As I mentioned last month, the 11,000 sq ft Coopers Square unit has remained empty since Woolworths’ closure more than two years ago, but this … Continue Reading

The Original Factory Shop in Morpeth – a shift towards more upmarket locations?

Graham Soult July 28, 2010 Market Towns, Property, Woolworths 2 Comments

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Original Factory Shop fascia. Photograph by Graham Soult

Original Factory Shop fascia

The rapidly expanding mini-department store retailer, The Original Factory Shop, opened its seventh North East store, in Morpeth, last week. It adds to the retailer’s existing stores within the region at Stanley, Prudhoe, Ashington, Crook, Spennymoor and Shildon.

As noted previously, The Original Factory Shop has been snapping up quite a few … Continue Reading

One degree of separation, as Soult meets Shopjacket in the Teesdale Mercury

Graham Soult June 10, 2010 Independent Stores, Market Towns, Property 1 Comment

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Teesdale Mercury article

Teesdale Mercury article

One of the things I love about retail is the way that you can always find obscure links between apparently unrelated places, people and shops – such as me innocently blogging about Newcastle’s old Zavvi store without initially realising the Woolworths connection.

The latest example of the phenomenon links two of my previous posts about completely different topics – the one from a couple of weeks ago about my visit … Continue Reading

‘Shopjacket’ brings hope to Whitley Bay town centre

Graham Soult March 04, 2010 Co-operatives, Property, Regeneration 3 Comments

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The former Select store in Whitley Bay, following its 'Shopjacketting'

The former Select store in Whitley Bay, following its 'Shopjacketting'

Given the challenges that Whitley Bay town centre has faced over the last year – with a number of high-profile retail departures – it’s been great to see it at the centre of a good news story today. Sources as diverse … Continue Reading

One day – ten former Woolies – one tired blogger

Graham Soult December 16, 2009 Property, Variety Stores, Woolworths 13 Comments

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Well worth it? Well, perhaps...

Well worth it? Well, perhaps...

Back in September, you might recall me trumpeting the fact that I’d visited six old Woolworths in a day. Today, however, I must confess to visiting (and photographing) ten in one day – or eleven if you count the extra one that I passed on the bus but was too tired to stop at. Needless to say, you … Continue Reading

A shabby view?

Graham Soult December 16, 2009 Brands, Property 2 Comments

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Whitley Road in Whitley Bay (16 December 2009)

Whitley Road in Whitley Bay (16 December 2009)

Visiting Whitley Bay in North Tyneside today, it was apparent that while there ARE indeed a lot of empty shops – as blogged about previously here – there’s still just about enough going on to keep shoppers interested. I’ll give a fuller rundown of my visit, including my reaction to the newly opened … Continue Reading

After the loss of M&S and T&G, Whitley Bay gains B&M

Graham Soult November 24, 2009 Property, Variety Stores, Woolworths 4 Comments

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B&M fascia

B&M fascia

Barely a day or two after writing about Whitley Bay Woolworths still being empty, I now read that it’s going to become a B&M Bargains store – and will open on Thursday.

Relatively little-known before 2009, Blackpool-based B&M Bargains is definitely one of the biggest beneficiaries of Woolworths’ demise, picking … Continue Reading

Whitley Bay’s “upward trend in retail shopping”

Graham Soult November 20, 2009 Property, Shopping Centres, Woolworths 3 Comments

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Woolworths in Whitley Bay, just prior to closure

Woolworths in Whitley Bay, just prior to closure

Anyone who follows my blog posts will see how frequently I draw from the great resource that is local newspaper websites. With the downturn affecting every high street in one way or another – most obviously with the collapse of Woolworths, and the subsequent arrival of new shops in 600 former … Continue Reading

Photo gallery: more former Woolies around the UK (part 1)

Graham Soult October 13, 2009 Property, Supermarkets, Woolworths 16 Comments

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Former Woolworths in Houghton-le-Spring

Former Woolworths in Houghton-le-Spring

Though I can’t claim to make a habit of visiting six old Woolies stores in the same day (including Houghton-le-Spring, above), I have managed to build up a pretty good collection of former Woolworths pics over the last year or so – snapping them as I spot them, and, it must be admitted, making the occasional detour expressly to get another one.

I figured that it … Continue Reading