A HUGE bargain chain is to open dozens of new this year as part of its expansion plans.
B&M is planning to open another 30 new stores over the next 12 months.
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The retailer has announced that it is accelerating the number of new store openings back towards around 40 stores per annum.
The move comes as the brand looks to meet its long-term target of increasing its number of shops from 665 to 950.
The new stores are expected to include a handful of relocations with the aim of replacing “legacy” shops as soon as leases expire.
This will involve the closure of some small sites and relocation to larger and “better suited” areas, according to the brand.
B&M hasn’t confirmed where the new stores could be located but it’s expected that any new openings will be randomly distributed across the UK.
It comes after the discounter opened 21 new stores in the last financial year.
Five of these included the closure and relocation of older stores to bigger sites.
The brand also boosted the number of garden centres by adding space at 12 new stores.
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Six of these newer stores have opened in the following locations since the end of April:
- Leven (expansion) – Saturday, April 29 – re-launch
- Armagh (expansion) – Friday, May 5 – re-launch
- Widnes – Wednesday, May 24
- Fforestfach (Swansea) – Friday, May 26
- Jarrow (major refit) – Saturday, May 27 – re-launch
- Fazakerley – Wednesday, May 31
In March alone the chain opened a total of five shops, some after hefty refurbishments and some brand new.
It comes after the chain shut a handful of older stores – some of which have since been relocated.
The following stores closed between February and May:
- Castlegate Shopping Centre, Stockton – Feb 25
- Maesglas Retail Park, Newport, Wales – March 4
- Boucher Road, Belfast – March 26
- Queens Drive Retail Park, Kilmarnock – March 26
- Broadwalk Shopping Centre, Bristol – March 29
- Bishop Auckland, Durham – May 5
- Widnes – May 17
- Burnden Retail Park store in Bolton – May 24
The B&M, which also owns Heron Foods, revealed a dip in profits but growth in revenue after releasing its 2023 financial year preliminary results this morning.
Group revenues grew 6.6% year on year to £4.9billion.
Alex Russo, B&M’s chief executive, said: “2023 has been another year of strong underlying progress for B&M and the long-term future looks very positive.
“B&M has many years of profitable growth ahead, to be delivered through our four channels of growth – existing B&M UK stores, new B&M UK stores, France and Heron.
“In delivering this growth, B&M will generate cash and compound earnings growth for our shareholders.”
“We are actively responding to the short-term pressure on consumers from the cost-of-living crisis with a relentless focus on price and value.”
B&M confirmed that it also has plans to open 20 new Heron Foods stores across the UK over the next 12 months after sales grew by 18.1% year on year.
Heron Foods already has 319 stores across the UK, mainly in the Midlands and North.
We’ve listed the three items you should always buy at Heron Foods and the items to avoid to bag the best deal.
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
