Barnstorming drone footage gives a whistle-stop look inside Next’s landmark store in the newly completed extension to Fosse Park shopping centre in Leicester.
Months of work fitting out the vast new store in the £168 million shopping park extension have come to an end.
The shop, which opened this week, features all of Next’s clothes and footwear ranges, as well as home accessories and furniture, lighting and soft furnishings.
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The two storey unit is also the first to have concessions, with a Costa Coffee outlet, Virgin Holidays centre and a Waterstones book store inside.
It opened 31 years after the original Fosse Park Next shop and employs around 200 people.
The drone footage was captured by drone pilot Seb Alfano at sadrones.co.uk, who said it took three hours to complete.
He said: "We did eight takes, all successful, however the one that made it to the video was the final take.
"We used our First Person View racing drones to do it, which are custom-built and we did a walk round beforehand that identified the key areas.
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"The battery life is just three minutes so we really had to focus on what we wanted to show off. We started at 7.30pm after all the staff had left, and finished around 11pm."
Store manager Megan Kay said they had been waiting patiently for the store to be finished and lockdown to end so that they could finally welcome the first customers.
She was particularly pleased with the new home department, which, she said, “features an experiential home-fragrance room, which is a first for Next”.
The fashion chain has its headquarters just two miles away in the village of Enderby, and since its launch in the 1980s has continued to extend its range of products to include home interiors, children’s fashion, flowers, the online directory – and outlets that feel more like department stores such as the 56,000 sq ft Fosse Park West branch.
It is Next’s third biggest store and planning for it started in 2014.
As well as “boutique” inspired fitting rooms, and an extended childrenswear section, the shop also has Ted Baker for Kids and a home fragrance room, where shoppers can sample 32 of the company’s best-selling fragrances for their home.
Yuli Thompson, senior vice president at Virgin Atlantic Holidays said they were hugely excited to open a new retail concession in the store.
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She said: “We know after a long break everyone is looking forward to planning their next holiday and whether you are looking for a city break in the Big Apple, a Caribbean beach break or a safari in South Africa our team are on hand to support every step of the way.”
Waterstones bookshop manager Louise Walker said it was exciting to be part of Fosse Park’s redevelopment.
She said: “We are looking forward to making the most of our new partnership with Next.”