UK | Waitrose has ramped up its investment in its store portfolio, planning to open up to 100 convenience shops across the UK over the next five years.
Waitrose’s John Barnes shop in Finchley Road, London, will test new concepts as part of the store investment programme. Over the next three years, a record £1bn will be invested in new stores and improvements to 150 existing shops.
The transformation of the Finchley Road store was built last year based on the revamp of the Sudbury shop in Suffolk. These stores, along with the makeover of the Maidenhead shop, will mark the next evolution of the shop proposition.
Over the next 12 months, they will be used to trial new services, product offerings, and concept upgrades before a new blueprint for Waitrose shops is revealed in 2025.
The investment in the store portfolio will focus on upgrading service counters, more prominence to the award-winning wine selection, third-party collaborations and dedicated space for on-demand grocery orders.
Finchley Road has become the first Waitrose to feature a chilled department for white wine, champagne, rose and beer. It has also given more space to top sellers, including adding a second dry-aged beef cabinet and dedicated parmesan section since 12 percent of Waitrose Parmigiano counter sales come from the one store.
Waitrose has introduced a new and exclusive partnership with Crosstown Doughnuts as part of a refreshed bakery. It has expanded its concession with Sushi Daily to include a Hot Wok offer of ready-to-eat dishes.
Due to the increased popularity of orders through Deliveroo and Uber Eats, it is also the first UK supermarket to have a dedicated internal space for on-demand grocery collections. This will include a hatch allowing riders to make collections outside the store’s opening hours.
The first new Waitrose store in six years will open in Hampton Hill later this year, subject to planning approval, with a second following in Greater London, which will open early in the new year.
“Waitrose will always offer fantastic food, but the groundwork we have undertaken behind the scenes in recent years means we can now focus on growth through new shops and ensuring our existing ones are providing great shopping experiences that match the quality of our products,” said James Bailey, Executive Director for Waitrose.
“The transformation of our Finchley Road store marks the next evolution of our journey to create a great shopping experience for our customers, underpinned by a high-quality product offering tailored to the local area and the quality service we are synonymous with.”
He added that they had taken time to understand how customers like to shop when designing the store and used this knowledge to introduce new concepts that will be tested and rolled out nationally.
“Our investment in our Waitrose store portfolio already yields strong results, with customers responding positively. As our retail-driven plan continues to gain traction, our growing number of shoppers and increasing customer satisfaction scores indicate its success,” said Nish Kankiwala, Chief Executive Officer of the John Lewis Partnership.
“This is a result of our unrelenting focus on improving the customer experience of our retail businesses, taking the love that exists for both brands and making sure customers are rewarded with better shops, the highest quality products, and the best service.”
The latest Kantar figures showed that customers were responding to the investment. Waitrose recorded its most robust growth since November 2023 and has continued to gain market share after July’s figures showed an increase for the first time since January 2022.
