Asda favourite to get Big W space

AMERICAN supermarkets giant Wal-Mart is preparing a dramatic expansion of its British operations by swooping on one of the biggest auctions of out-of-town retail space in years.

Woolworths and property agent Colliers CRE have drawn up a list of prospective tenants to take at least 800,000 square feet of space in 21 out-of-town Big W stores.

Possible candidates include Marks & Spencer, Next, Arcadia, New Look and Bhs but Wal-Mart, looking for space for its new standalone George clothing shops, is said to be at the front of the queue.

After the success of the George clothing range at Wal-Mart's Asda stores, the first separately branded George stores opened in Leeds and Croydon in September. Two more are due to open in May, in Preston and Northampton.

Wal-Mart declined to comment directly on its British expansion plans but Andy Bond, managing director of Asda and head of George, said earlier this month that the company was 'looking forward to bringing our flair for fashion and affordable prices to even more customers'.

Wal-Mart is flush with funds and, having recently lost the battle for Safeway, is eager to extend its UK presence.

It does not have an Asda in-town store or a superstore in two of the towns where Big W space is up for grabs. According to data from Fashiontrack, George last year had

UK sales of about £1bn for Wal-Mart/Asda, which in 2002 had turnover of £12.1bn and £605m of pre-tax profits.

Worldwide clothing provides its fastest-growing source of income. Asda is headed by chief executive Tony DeNunzio.

Malcolm Dalgleish, founder of specialist retail agent Dalgleish, said: 'George is already doing well on the in-store front and now separately it has started taking stores in the High Street. We think out-of-town fits nicely.'

As well as Wal-Mart, Woolworths is said to be courting electrical groups Currys and Comet and clothing groups Matalan and TK Maxx as buyers of the Big W space. 'Certainly, we will be having a dialogue with them,' said a source close to Woolworths.

Property agents marked DIY specialist Focus as a likely contender to take old Big W space, but ruled out rivals B&Q and Homebase, which would want bigger sites. Out-of-town space in retail parks is in hot demand because of a recent clampdown by planning authorities trying to safeguard High Street retailers.

All the Big W sites have A1 consent, meaning they can sell anything from paints to home goods and clothing, and many also have consent to sell food. The stores are all leasehold with between 10 and 15 years to run.

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