Times Are Tough, but London Retail Takes the Long View – WWD

LONDON — While 2022 is shaping up as another year of COVID-19 uncertainty, with inflation, higher interest rates and income taxes putting renewed pressure on consumers, retailers and brand owners are forging ahead with opening plans and taking the long view.

Over the next five years, the West End alone will benefit from 5 billion pounds of capital investment in 22 existing and new West End developments, while more than 220 million pounds will be spent on open public spaces in the area, which takes place in Mayfair, Soho. and walks around Oxford and Piccadilly Circus.

Development will focus on providing a more diverse and immersive experience, with approximately 76 percent of West End development set for mixed use.

For example, there are plans to turn Cavendish Square near Oxford Circus into a health and wellness destination, while the near-completed Outernet London, above Tottenham Court Road station, will offer a 2,000-seat music venue, galleries, broadcast and media facilities, hotels, bars and restaurants. restaurant.

The idea is to prepare for a better future when international travel picks up again and local consumers are more willing to hit the streets and start spending time in physical spaces.

Jace Tyrrell, chief executive officer of New West End Company, which represents some 600 retail, restaurant, hotel and property owners around Bond, Oxford and Regent streets, believes the worst is behind London retail and looks forward to the second half of 2022 , when retail and leisure sales will increase, by an estimated 7 billion pounds, compared with 5 billion pounds this year.

Here, take a look at some of the major developments and expected openings in 2022 and beyond.

Ikea

Work will begin to transform one of London’s most famous retail spaces at Oxford Circus into the first Ikea showroom in central London. Customers will be able to browse sample rooms, plan their own spaces, and click-and-collect. The Swedish furniture giant paid 378 million pounds for the rent of the building housing Topshop, the former jewel in Sir Philip Green’s now-defunct Arcadia crown, since 1994.

The three-story building, which spans 239,000 square feet over seven floors, will be converted into an Ikea store set to open in the second half of 2023. Ikea is expected to have elbowed its way to rival bidders including Stefan Persson of H&M, and Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, owner of Sports Direct and House of Fraser. The sale of the flagship on Oxford Street will be used to settle the £312 million mortgage it took on the building in 2019, with around £40 million expected to go into Arcadia’s pension fund.

unique

Fast Retailing Co. has taken prime corner locations on Regent Street for its Uniqlo and Theory brands. The interconnected shops will open in the spring at 101-113 Regent Street, on the corner of Vigo Street in what has until recently been a Superdry mainstay.

The space will span three floors, with Uniqlo downstairs, the ground floor and first floor, and Theory on the ground floor. The space is 20,500 square feet and marks the first time Uniqlo and Theory will occupy the same store in the UK. The location is across the street from Uniqlo’s Regent Street store (which is closing) and the brand also has a flagship on Oxford Street, a 10-minute walk away.

Gymshark

Backed by a multi-million dollar investment from General Atlantic in 2020, Gymshark opened its first standalone physical store in the former J. Crew space at 165 Regent Street. The 18,000-square-foot space will be open over the summer and include a rehearsal studio. The unit will be located just a short walk from rivals Lululemon and Nike Town.

J. Crew had landed on the corner site with a bang in 2013, but the brand’s popularity in the UK quickly waned: London initially welcomed six J. Crew stores but the honeymoon didn’t last after they saw the sticker prices, which were much higher than they were used to. pay for shopping trips to the US In 2020, J. Crew closed all of its stores in the UK, a little over a week after the company emerged from bankruptcy in the US

The Italian luxury brand will move from its old corner site on Old Bond Street to 144-146 New Bond Street. It is expected to take possession of the 16,000-square-foot space, which currently houses the Halcyon Gallery, by the fall of 2022. Trophaeum Asset Management, which owns most of Albemarle Street, another property on New Bond Street and a number of prime spaces around London, purchased the retail block in February 2020 from a company controlled by banker Joseph Safra.

Another Dry brand, Balenciaga, will also open in New Bond this year, although there are some who can’t resist saying goodbye to the bright green hoarding that has been going on for months. The hoard features a larger-than-life Balenciaga model in oversized hoodies and coats, and the flashy green color certainly brightens up the corner site, previously occupied by shoe brand Russell & Bromley.

Gucci and Balenciaga’s move to New Bond marks a bigger shift taking place on the historic shopping street, which measures half a mile and connects Piccadilly with Oxford Street. Megabrands migrated north to New Bond as a large luxury group, and property company, took up real estate at the Oxford Street end of New Bond. The end of the street will also get busier, with the inauguration of the main rail and Crossrail underground network in early 2022, and the upcoming opening of the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Hanover Square.

Pronovia

Pronovias is on the move and poised to open its bigger New Bond Street flagship after a new 10-year licensing deal with Vera Wang. Barcelona-based Pronovias began manufacturing, distributing and marketing Vera Wang Bride in select stores and wholesale accounts globally in October, and needed more space to display Vera Wang Bride, which costs about 60 percent less than wedding dresses. couture Wang and is meant to reach a wider and international customer base.

Pronovias plans to move from its place at 94 New Bond Street to 70-71 New Bond Street, a property owned by Great Portland Estates, in the spring. Vera Wang Bride will be placed in front of the Pronovias store on a black shelf. Vera Wang’s Wedding Dresses will be made to order, and the new and larger space will mean that the bride will have room to try samples and complete her outfit. London is one of the few cities, including Madrid, New York, Paris and Milan, where the collection will be available.