Retailer Marks and Spencer has confirmed that its Newcastle outlet in Kingston Park will transition into a Foodhall as part of renovations at the retail park.
Having served the area for years originally as Simply Food, M&S went on to significantly enlarge its presence with a considerable investment, unveiling an expansive shop five times the initial size in 2012.
The two-storey addition featured a café, clothing lines, creating 100 new roles in the process.
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Today, the large store has departments for womenswear, kidswear, menswear, and lingerie, along with footwear and beauty products, as well as its click-and-collect service. Plans are under way for the premises to scale down, operating solely as a Foodhall with considerably less floor space.
A spokesperson for Marks and Spencer said: "M&S Kenton Bar is going to be converted into a food only store. The dates and details around this are not yet fully agreed, however, we anticipate that work will start later in the Spring. In the meantime, the store will continue to trade the full offer as normal."
The upcoming modifications were first hinted at within proposals for revamping Kingston Park Retail Park, involving facelifts for storefronts. Hanro Group, the developers, have secured the green light on planning permission to modernise the park, which houses names like Next, Boots, Specsavers, Greggs, and Aldi among its tenants, reports .
The proposed plans involve the construction of new canopies, following the removal of existing ones, as well as the subdivision of the MandS unit into two separate entities. Detailed blueprints reveal that changes at the Marks and Spencer store will be part of the first phase of construction, where over half the store will be "fallowed back" to the landlord.
The escalators will be removed, making way for a significant portion of the current store to be transformed into a new retail unit for a fresh tenant, leaving the remaining 14,802sqft to operate as a Foodhall.
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A design statement submitted by Norr Consultants as part of the plans stated: "The retail park's current appearance is somewhat outdated and need of a face-lift in keeping with adjacent redevelopments, such as the recently completed Aldi supermarket. The canopies now look dated and are unviable to repair as the glazed arched panels frequently fail."
"The submitted design proposes to sub-divide the unit into two, with M&S retaining the larger unit, and a smaller unit formed to suit a new retailer. The existing curved canopy will be removed and store frontages will be replaced with a contemporary angled canopy, inviting the public underneath the space and into the stores, whilst protecting from rain, and being steep enough to discourage birds from roosting."
It added: "The design of the new frontage has been carefully considered to ensure that it elevates the character of the existing building to deliver a contemporary shopping experience."
The proposed modifications represent the largest investment in the park since discount supermarket Aldi opened its doors there. Aldi became the most recent tenant at the park in March 2023, following the demolition of buildings that previously housed businesses such as Peacocks and Poundstretcher stores, along with Luciano's Italian Restaurant.