Value fashion powerhouse TK Maxx is preparing to shake up the flagging home furnishings sector with the launch of a standalone homewares fascia.
TK Maxx will open five 10,000 to 15,000 sq ft home stores in the Southeast in the first half of 2008, operating under the HomeSense fascia, which already exists in Canada.
A spokeswoman confirmed the venture, but said that the final details regarding sites, product range and brand concept had not been finalised. It is likely that the UK HomeSense logo will differ from its Canadian sister brand.
TK Maxx stocks homewares in most of its 225 UK shops and has two standalone home stores adjacent to its fashion outlets in Edinburgh and York, which trade as TK Maxx.
In Canada, HomeSense has 71 stores run as a division of Winners Merchants International. The latter is owned by TJX Companies, which operates TJ Maxx, Marshalls, AJ Wright, HomeGoods and Bob’s Stores in the US, along with Winners in Canada and TK Maxx in the UK, Ireland and Germany.
HomeSense stocks a selection of designer merchandise, with discounts of up to 60 per cent off full price. It introduces more than 10,000 items each week. Products include soft furnishings, lighting, crockery and furniture.
MHE Retail chief executive George Wallace said that TK Maxx has done well since launching in the UK as an unknown brand and grown to be a “very significant player in the value fashion sector”.
However, he said that the homewares sector is challenging and the retail model needs to be right. “Standalone homewares stores do not have the frequency of purchase that you get with clothing,” he said. “They seem to work well as add-ons to a fashion offer, as there is sufficient traffic coming through.”
Homewares is a competitive market, with established names such as Bhs and Next opening standalone homewares shops. Home Retail Group has brought Irish homewares chain Home Store + More to the UK and opened its first store at Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire this month. It is also negotiating for several other sites.
TJX Companies reported net sales for the third quarter to October 27 up 6 per cent to US$4.7 billion (£2.28 billion). For Winners and HomeSense, net sales for the 39 weeks to the same date were US$1.42 billion (£689.8 million). For the same period, TK Maxx reported net sales of US$1.49 billion (£723.9 million).
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