Waitrose is ramping up investment in its store portfolio with 100 new convenience shops set to open across the UK over the next five years. The announcement forms part of a refreshed vision for what its retail offering could look like for customers in the future.
The supermarket said it planned to invest £1bn on its expansion plans which also includes improvements to 150 existing shops, almost half of its estate.
The new stores will be used to trial services, product offerings and concept upgrades before a bold blueprint for Waitrose shops is revealed in 2025.
These include a new look for its meat and fish counters, greater flexibility to respond to local demand, expanded dedicated space for on demand grocery orders, greater prominence for its award-winning wine selection and more third-party collaboration.
James Bailey, Executive Director for Waitrose, said: “Waitrose will always offer fantastic food, but the groundwork we have undertaken behind the scenes in recent years means we can now focus on growth through new shops and ensuring our existing ones are providing great shopping experiences that match the quality of our products.”
The retailer will use its recently revamped Finchley Road, London, store to test new concepts as part of the investment programme.
Bailey added: “The transformation of our Finchley Road store marks the next evolution of our journey to create a great shopping experience for our customers, underpinned by a high-quality product offering tailored to the local area, and the quality service we are synonymous with. In designing the store, we have taken time to understand how our customers like to shop, and used this knowledge to introduce new concepts that will be tested and rolled out nationally as we continue to work towards the Waitrose of the future.”
