Marks and Spencer Plans Major Refurb for Chiswick Store
Retailer says that local branch is to be extended
The company says that the store is to be extended
April 19, 2025
Marks and Spencer has announced a planned major refurbishment of its Chiswick store as part of an investment scheme across the capital.
It is one of seven Foodhalls being upgraded in a £90million programme focused on London.
The announcement specifically mentions the branch at 236 Chiswick High Road as performing well and suggests the new layout will have a revamped produce section with a wider selection of fresh fruits and vegetables in a market style layout and a larger bakery operating throughout the day. It will also offer takeaway hot drinks, including barista-made coffee such as M&S’ Magic Coffee.
The makeover will also include the latest technology to run more energy efficiently with LED lighting, natural refrigerant fridges and freezers which the company says will achieve a 60% emission reduction.
While the company says the store is to be extended, it remains unclear whether this is within the existing footprint or if the intention is to take over adjacent units which are vacant including the former sites of Mint Velvet and Up and Running. Marks and Spencer is understood to own the leases on both sites. It has not responded to multiple requests for comment on this question, but it did say in its press release that some of its store plans will require planning permission.
The investment programme includes new six foodhalls in Clapham, Covent Garden, Fulham Broadway, Putney, New Malden and Leytonstone and the refurbishment of eleven existing stores including a full refresh of the Pantheon on Oxford Street. It says that 450 new jobs will be created and 70,000 sq ft will be added overall to stores across London. The new stores are to open ‘over the next few years’.
Having retrenched before the pandemic, the company started expanding again in 2023 with £30 million of investment in London. The retailer has over 100 stores across the capital and has been serving customers since 1903 when it opened a market stall in Brixton. M&S’ food market share in London (4.5%) is higher than other cities in the UK.
Sacha Berendji, Operations Director at M&S said, “London has always been a special place for M&S, growing from penny bazaars in the early 20th century into fresh Foodhalls like the one in Brixton we reopened last year. We serve thousands of customers in the capital across our full line offering in larger stores on Oxford Street, which are soon to be redeveloped, to food on the move in train stations and we are always looking at what we can do next. Our pipeline of stores demonstrates our continued investment in London, and we will continue to bring the very best of M&S to customers from Brixton to Barnet for years to come.”
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We’ve always done that and won’t be changing, in fact we’d like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we’d be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you’d like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |