Supermarket chain Waitrose is preparing for a six-fold increase in the number of its locations.
LONDON - British supermarket chain Waitrose announced plans to nearly double the number of its stores to reach 250 by year's end, and then open 40 stores a year until 2015, The Sunday Telegraph reports.
Additionally, partner sites with Boots health and beauty shops and gasoline stations could bring 1,000 more outlets, bringing the total of Waitrose locations to 1,450.
"Today, we have 231 Waitrose stores, nine Welcome Break outlets, seven Boots stores and six Shell garages," said Waitrose Managing Director Mark Price. "There's the potential to add 220 more Waitrose shops and probably 1,000 partner outlets, so if the economic models of all of them were to work, I think we could have up to 1,450 branches in five years' time."
Waitrose's plan includes adding 10 standalone supermarkets and 30 convenience stores a year. The company is outperforming Britain's food retail sector, exhibiting strong growth with sales of ?4.5 billion ($6.9 billion US) in the most recent fiscal year. Its 2010 sales are five times the retail sector average.
"We're massively outperforming the market," Price said. "...I'm very optimistic about Waitrose and I think we'll continue to forge ahead."
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