Next has negotiated new leases for the former beauty halls in five of the Debenhams stores owned by Hammerson. Hammerson had declined to offer Debenhams the terms it was seeking for these stores which are located in high footfall shopping centres. Instead, Hammerson is seeking to develop the stores and use much of the upper floor space for leisure operators rather than retailers.
Next will launch five standalone premium beauty halls to complement its online beauty business. Locations are The Bullring, Birmingham; The Oracle, Reading; Highcross, Leicester; Silverburn, Glasgow; and Centrale, Croydon. Next has already commenced staff recruitment for the locations and may well attract former Debenhams employees.
“This is an exciting opportunity to work with existing and new beauty brand partners to create a new force in beauty retailing – bringing our online business to life through premium store environments in some of the UK’s most important retail locations,” said Simon Wolfson, CEO, Next.
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