Retailer Laura Ashley is replacing its struggling clothes shops with out-of-town furniture and homeware shops.
The retailer plans to open 12 shops, a total of 100,000 sq ft, within three years on retail parks and off pitch high street locations.
Rents below £20 sq ft are sought.
Following the collapse of furniture retailers leaving vacancies on parks, the expansion plans will be welcomed by the out-of-town bulky-goods market.
Chief operating office of Laura Ashley, Mike Kingsbury, said: “We are not specifically targeting retail parks but are using the ‘Majestic Wines’ approach’: opening in locations where we are a destination and not necessarily in the prime pitch.”
References: Property Week 24/03/06
