M&S to take over former Trafford Centre Debenhams
The retailer will move into the 135,000 sq ft unit, which has been vacant since 2021.
M&S, which currently occupies an 87,000 sq ft store within the Trafford Centre, has lodged a building control application with the local council to convert the former Debenhams store into its newest outlet.
“We’re really excited to announce our plans to move to a brand new, bigger, better M&S store in the Trafford Centre,” said Simon Layton, regional manager for M&S.
“The new M&S Trafford Centre store will offer customers a much bigger range of M&S products across a fresh market-style foodhall, a spacious clothing, home and beauty department, and a brand new M&S café.”
Layton added: “This major investment in Greater Manchester is part of rotating our store estate to make sure we have the right stores in the right locations to offer our customers a brilliant shopping experience.”
All of M&S’s current Trafford Centre staff will be retained and moved over to the new store, which will also see the company employ additional staff.
The existing store will remain open until the new outlet launches later this year, according to M&S.
Former Debenhams stores across the country are in the process of being repurposed following the company’s collapse in 2021 and M&S has been one of the main beneficiaries.
The retailer made similar moves to its Trafford Centre switch at Birmingham’s Bullring, Chesterfield’s Ravenside Retail Park, and Lakeside Shopping Centre in Essex.
In Liverpool, M&S will take over half of the 200,000 sq ft vacant department store, while entertainment operator Gravity will occupy the rest.
In Stockport, where the council owns the old Debenhams building, the property is to be converted into film studio space.
In Blackpool, Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group is to transform the ex-Debenhams into a Sports Direct and a Flannels.
Meanwhile, the former Debenhams store within the Rylands Building on Market Street in Manchester is the subject of plans for its conversion into a near-300,000 sq ft office development by German investor AM Alpha.
M&S should take the city Debenham store and Selfridges can expand.
By Anonymous
That’s a bugger, I like John Lewis, Lakeland and M&S being in striking distance of each other, Means I don’t have to seethe rest of the place!
By Anonymous
It’s taken them 20 years to take this store
By TJL
Re Anonymous at 08.49
Totally agree. I seem to remember that after the IRA bombing and M&S was rebuilt on market street they were having the whole site including where selfridges is now.
Market conditions had changed for them so they let Selfridges have part of the site.
Would have been the largest M&S in the country.
By Peter Chapman
Good news . I knew this has been on the cards for sometime. I wonder will they have to reconvert the existing 4 story store back to two stories as it once was. I seem to remember that was a lot of work at the time.
By Anonymous
RE 5:39 pmBy Anonymous
M&S in Trafford was originally C&A when the centre opened – rumour has it that M&S were offered an anchor tenant space, so either Selfridges or Debenhams unit but turned them down. After ~C&A closed, M&S then opened up in the original two floor site, and then added in the two extra mezzanine floors, and then extended sideways in to adjacent units towards John Lewis
By Ben A
RE1:38 pm By Peter Chapman
M&S in the city centre originally opened in 1998 as the entire building, if memory serves me correctly each floor was the size of a football pitch
However, M&S fortunes changed quickly and then the site was split in two, with Selfridges taking half of the building
By Ben A