Ben.A.98
Member
- Joined
- 13 Feb 2013
- Messages
- 231
Elgin is now a Poundland
-
Our new ticketing site is now live! Using either this or the original site (both powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!
What's Your Woolworths Now?
- Thread starter LM 170
- Start date
- Status
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R
RailUK Forums
That sounds a familiar story. The Coventry Big W became a Tesco Extra even though there was already one the next junction down the M6 plus an established large store only a few miles away.
Batman
Member
Cannock's old Woolworth's is now a Poundland, the Bloxwich store is now Bright House and Walsall's store became a TJ Hughes (after what I would imagine was a very expensive refurbishment to add a second store). That closed after about 12 months, and the ground floor is now a poundland (the second in Walsall town centre, the other's in the Saddler's Centre opposite the station ticket office), and the upper floor is now Pure Gym.
Yeah I never understand why some towns 'need' a second branch of a shop. Hanley (Stoke on Trent) now has 2 branches of Poundland yet neither has ever been all that hectic! I can only presume the original one (in the less popular end of the Potteries shopping centre) is costing them buttons to rent!
Batman
Member
To be fair, both Poundland stores in Walsall town centre are in prime locations. One's located in the Sanddler's centre in a prominent location opposite the rail station and M&S, and the others in a prime location at the end of Park Street (the main shopping street) and is next to the art gallery and just over the road from the popular Crown Wharf retail park.
I can understand if on different sides of the town or whatever, but yes it was always something that puzzled me.
Birmingham is/was (when I lived there a few years ago) interesting for that; there were a couple of duplicates of the major chains in the city centre, eg:
HMV - 3 branches; one in the Pallasades, one in the Bullring and one on High Street/the Pavillions
Boots - 4 branches; a small one on the station, one on New Street, one in the Bullring and one on High Street
In the same area:
Waterlooville store is a Poundland.
Portsmouth's large store is still unoccupied I believe (although haven't been down there for a while) - must be a fortune in rent there.
BestWestern
Established Member
- Joined
- 6 Feb 2011
- Messages
- 6,736
Phirstman:1703728 said:
If you mean Commercial Rd, it was merged with the former C&A next door quite some time ago to allow Primark to expand. The North End branch has become the inevitable 99p store or similar.
DaveNewcastle
Established Member
I think the driving factor in operating multiple branches in this way is not an expectation that revenue will be multiplied by the number of branches, but that it increases market share, potentially to the point of 100% (or in other terms, trying to keep the other chains out of the town).
Margins in retailling can be so slender (or non existent) that the only tools left to manage profitability after the likes of 'loyalty schemes', opening hours, re-stocking etc. are agressively increasing market share, oh, and of course, cash flow (i.e. not paying suppliers for as long as possible).
Spaceflower
Established Member
- Joined
- 13 Jul 2007
- Messages
- 1,506
Not sure. I 'll have to have a look at what became the old Houghton-le-Spring and Peterlee Woolworths next time I'm up.
With respect to Peterlee, it always had stiff competition from Asda but when we got Wilkinson, many different 'pound' shops, the ex-catalogue shop, Aldi and then, to top it off, Argos....it was writing on the wall. Last time I was in a Woolworths was the early naughties buying a CD. Remember them?
As for Houghton-le-Spring.....not a town centre I ever visited much other than when changing buses to and from Sunderland/Tyneside. Though there isn't anything there in the way of high street names. They even lost their Blockbuster a short time ago. I think the Co-Op is the biggest shop there now
With respect to Peterlee, it always had stiff competition from Asda but when we got Wilkinson, many different 'pound' shops, the ex-catalogue shop, Aldi and then, to top it off, Argos....it was writing on the wall. Last time I was in a Woolworths was the early naughties buying a CD. Remember them?
As for Houghton-le-Spring.....not a town centre I ever visited much other than when changing buses to and from Sunderland/Tyneside. Though there isn't anything there in the way of high street names. They even lost their Blockbuster a short time ago. I think the Co-Op is the biggest shop there now
michael769
Established Member
- Joined
- 9 Oct 2005
- Messages
- 2,007
Both the Livingston and Irvine branches became Wilkinsons.
I think quite a few Scots branches where taken by Wilkos, who at the time had no Scottish presence.
I think quite a few Scots branches where taken by Wilkos, who at the time had no Scottish presence.
Indeed. Also with multiple stores around towns it keeps them in peoples minds so those who may not have wanted any music,say, from HMV by the time they get to the third one they may change their mind and pop in to buy something that they never set out to buy.
One of the reasons why places like Swatch used to have stands at stations like KGX. Hardly anyone bought from there, if ever(I did get them to shorten a strap once) but they will have it in their mind by the time they get down to the centre of town.
Boothby97
Established Member
The store in Cleethorpes became a Boyes store. Can't remember what the store in Grimsby became, maybe one of the clothing brands
martin2345uk
Established Member
The one in my hometown of Chelmsford, Essex, is now a massive Barclays Bank!
Kite159
Veteran Member
Which at the rate Barclays is planning to close branches will probably return to an empty shop within the next couple years
Smudger105e
Member
Long Eaton
Last edited:
4-6-2 Coast
Member
- Joined
- 6 Oct 2013
- Messages
- 29
Closest current one is now a TK Max. The one where I used to live became a Woolco and then a Wal-Mart, but that was an entirely different country, altogether.
Hyphen
Member
Heh. Much like similar shops got a number of the old Kwik-Save stores in that area - "Home Bargains" in Long Eaton, "BargainBuys" in Stabbo and B&M also took the Kwik Save in Beeston (though wasn't that a Somerfield for a while?)
- Status