House of Fraser will unveil a boutique-style format when its City of London store opens on September 9.
At 43,000 sq ft (3,995 sq m), City is less than half the size of a traditional House of Fraser store, but the location, in the former Guardian Royal Exchange building, is ideally situated to attract the thousands of workers in the area. The King William site dominates the City end of London Bridge.
Marketing director Meg Gilmore said the boutique feel was dictated by the size of the shop: 'It can't be the full-line offer like Oxford Street or Bluewater, so we have utilised the space to meet the needs of that particular market.'
Spread over five floors, the core merchandise areas are men's and women's clothing, fashion accessories, cosmetics and home-related gifts. There will also be a designer room and bespoke tailoring.
Chief executive John Coleman sees future growth coming from increased trading space, with 120,000 to 140,000 sq ft (11,150 to 13,000 sq m) stores scheduled to open in Croydon and Dublin next autumn. Norwich and Belfast are also possibilities.
- Scottish entrepreneur Tom Hunter was liberated from the Takeover Panel-imposed six-month bid ban yesterday, but with House of Fraser trading above the January offer price of 85p, a new approach seemed unlikely as Retail Week went to press.
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