If you think that having an upmarket store like Waitrose would help places like Rayleigh, there’s a chance that it might happen…
According to the Guardian website:
Waitrose boss Mark Price is drawing up plans to transform the upmarket food chain into a consumer brand available in thousands of non-Waitrose shops in the UK and overseas…..
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…..The plan to sell Waitrose goods in other stores will be kickstarted this month when Price unveils details of a deal that could eventually see Waitrose food sold in more than 700 Boots outlets. Sections of Boots’ stores will be transformed into mini-Waitroses, with the grocer’s own fixtures, fittings and signage. In return, Waitrose will sell a range of Boots health and beauty goods in its own stores.
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Last year Waitrose defied predictions it would be battered by the recession and emerged as the fastest-growing big grocer, chalking up a sales increase of more than 11% to in excess of ?4.5bn, trouncing upmarket rival Marks & Spencer. “We expect to be the fastest growing again this year,” Price said.
According to Boots’ own website, they have around 2,600 stores. So clear only a fraction of their stores will be selling Waitrose stuff. But maybe Rayleigh would be a suitable candidate?
we’ve often walked through Boots in Rayleigh and wondered how much longer it can carry on trading, it always seems deserted !!! Having this one used as a Waitrose outlet appears a good idea and gets my vote. Would the writing on the wall be that Boots closes its doors in the near future then, another empty shop in the high street?
It’s an interesting proposal as an experiment and has my vote if it means that we don’t lose the BOOTS shop in the process.
I personally would like to see the BOOTS brand survive and a larger WAITROSE move into the high street. This could well be the kick start that RAYLEIGH High Street needs to evolve.
Rayleigh does have some lovely “local” businesses on the High Street but quality high street brands attract in the majority of shoppers and quality brands compliment local businesses too.
I dont mind the idea of a waitrose but I disagree with this idea of the high street evolving, due to the high prices to accomodate on the high street local shops are finding it difficult to run and that is definitely something that needs to change because we are losing our high street. In Rayleigh I am fed up of seeing pubs, hairdressers and charity shops, we need more shops like feathering your nest, maybe a book shop, dvds, technology.
It would make my shopping 100% better if we had a excellent supermarket like waitrose in rayleigh high street. Enough hairdressers, restaurants, pubs we want good quality shops in rayleigh this will stop so many locals going out of town to shop for top quality goods. Please show me one good quality ladies fashion shop, good quality food store, we do not have a good books shop, stationers, i have to travel to other local towns for all these things, so come on rayleigh let us get going,
I have to say wishing for a Waitrose could do more harm than good in that it will kill off independants, currently we only have one greengrocer and two butchers, and two independant convenience stores in the high street, a Waitrose (after Morrisons) might kill these off. We have to be careful for what we wish for
You have a point Richard, but we do need a more vibrant High St. All that seems to open at the moment are food outlets. I think we are well past the stage where no-one is ever going to starve to death in Rayleigh High St. We definitely need a good book shop, dvd/cd shop, more choice on quality clothing than just M&Co. With Phones4U going under now is a chance for a good quality retailer to step in and take that shop. A mini Waitrose wouldn’t necessarily kill off the local butcher and other independents. The one at Leigh doesn’t carry that big a selection of meat. What it (or something like it) could do is start to turn the High St. into a one stop shop destination. If the footfall increased due to it then other shops would start to follow.