Waitrose is planning to open 100 convenience stores in market towns across the UK.
The move, reported in the Daily Telegraph, is designed to tap into the increasing popularity of locally sourced food and to provide an alternative to Tesco Expresses and Sainsbury’s Local stores.
The first store will be trialled in St Neots, Cambridgeshire.
Waitrose managing director Mark Price told the newspaper: “We want at least half the space dedicated to fresh food, and much of that will be local food from nearby farms.
“What we’re aiming to do is reflect the ambience of a traditional grocery shop by focusing on the sense of community and service associated with our brand. In addition to providing local information and more local produce, we engaged the community in our preparatory research to ensure customers feel this is their neighbourhood shop.”
Waitrose, part of the John Lewis group, currently has 187 branches.
The retailer has estimated that there are four million middle-class shoppers who would like to shop regularly at Waitrose, but do not have a local store.
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