MARKS & Spencer is set to open a food hall and cafe at Leamington Shopping park.
A public consultation has been launched on plans for three new shops, including an M&S Foodhall, on the site of the former Focus DIY Store Garden Centre.
The redevelopment site is the hoarded-off area between Debenhams and New Look, which has been vacant since the Focus Store closed in 2011.
The proposals are for a new M&S Foodhall with an in-store café – with a sales area similar in size to the food sales area of the Parade store in Leamington – and two smaller shops for non-food retail.
The plans also include a reconfigured service yard and 20 space staff car park to the rear of the new shops, increasing the number of overall parking spaces available at the Shopping Park.
A shopper survey carried out in December revealed more than two thirds of customers questioned would welcome an M&S Foodhall at Leamington Shopping Park, previously known as the Shire’s Retail Park..
M&S has been seeking a site for an additional food store in Leamington for more than a decade to complement its town centre stores.
The proposed M&S Foodhall at the shopping park would be in addition to the Leamington and Warwick town centre stores which would not be affected by the proposals.
Leamington Shopping Park is undertaking a public consultation before finalising the proposals and submitting a planning application later this summer.
A public exhibition is being held at Leamington Shopping Park – in a trailer outside the site, between Debenhams and New Look – on Friday and Saturday.
A spokesperson from Leamington Shopping Park said: “The former Focus DIY store has been vacant for some time and we have been looking at ways to bring this part of the Shopping Park back into active use to enhance our customers’ shopping experience and provide a boost to the local economy.
“To help inform our final application, we are encouraging local residents and shoppers to participate in the consultation, as well as come along to the public exhibition to discuss the proposals with members of the project team, and to let us know what they think.”
Visiting www.leamingtonshoppingpark.co.uk for further details.
