17th Jul 2006 17:37
Lewis(John) PLC17 July 2006 WAITROSE ANNOUNCES FURTHER 6-STORE ACQUISITION Waitrose, the food shops of the John Lewis Partnership, today announces theacquisition of six stores from Morrisons and a Regional Distribution Centre(RDC) centre from Morrisons.The acquisition, which follows Waitrose's recentexpansion into Scotland, strengthens presence in its core trading regions andexpands the supermarket's distinct levels of quality fresh food and expertservice further across the UK. The new shops are in Hexham in Northumberland; Eastbourne; Formby in Merseyside;Parkstone in Poole, Dorset; Lymington in Hampshire; and Portswood inSouthampton, Hampshire. The 600,000sq ft RDC is in Aylesford, Kent. Eachacquired store will be converted to a Waitrose branch in a phased programmeexpected to be completed by mid November 2006. This expansion builds on the five stores acquired from Somerfield earlier thisyear, a deal that took Waitrose into Scotland for the first time with theopening of two branches in Edinburgh on 1 June. Together with a new shop openingin Bloomsbury, London later this month, this acquisition will bring the totalnumber of Waitrose food shops to 182. Following a detailed assessment, four new shops in better locations will replaceexisting Waitrose branches in Southport, Westbourne, Lymington and Southampton.In each of these cases, the move will strengthen the position of the Waitrosebrand and provide a better offer to customers. All Waitrose Partners will beoffered the opportunity to relocate to the new branch and Morrisons employeestransferring to Waitrose will be entitled to share in the unique benefits ofemployee ownership, including participation in the annual John Lewis Partnershipbonus scheme. The cost of this acquisition is not being disclosed but this, together with theconversion costs, is fully covered by funding arrangements already in place. Commenting on the acquisition, Steven Esom, Managing Director of Waitrose, said: "Our strategy is to build a strong business with nationwide reach byconsolidating our position where we are already well established and byexpanding into new areas. Last month we opened our first stores in Scotland andtoday's announcement gives us a better and deeper trading position in thetraditional Waitrose heartland. We are very encouraged that the appeal for the Waitrose offer of expert serviceand quality fresh food is strong and growing in both new and old territories. Wewill continue to seek to bring that offer to more customers across the country." Press enquiries:WaitroseGill Smith, Corporate PR Manager Tel: 01344 825165Kate van Beek, Head of Press and PR Tel: 07801 274695 Citigate Tel: 020 7638 9571 About WaitroseWaitrose currently has 179 branches (excluding the 2 new branches and 4relocations mentioned today) dedicated to offering quality fresh food, value andcustomer service. Nationally, Waitrose has almost 4% share of the retail foodmarket. In the South of England, where it has its main presence, its marketshare is 7%. The first shop was opened in 1904, in Acton by Wallace Waite, Arthur Rose andDavid Taylor. The John Lewis Partnership acquired the business in 1937 and thefirst Waitrose supermarket opened in 1955. Proposed stores being acquired:Eastbourne, East Sussex17,061 sq ft Hexham, Northumberland15,300 sq ft Portswood, Southampton14,130 sq ft Formby, Merseyside19,999 sq ft Parkstone, Poole22,140 sq ft Lymington, Hampshire21,011 sq ft This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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