The Works to open 60 more shops
Discount retailer The Works, which has its headquarters in Sutton Coldfield, has announced plans to create 600 new jobs and open 60 new shops over the next 12 months.
The company, which sells arts and crafts, books, toys and stationery, has enjoyed strong on and offline growth, opening new stores both on the high street and in out-of-town locations at a rate of one a week. It currently has 398 shops across the UK and plans to grow its estate to 650 stores by 2022.
Over the next 12 months the value retailer will be investing £5.3 million on new stores and an additional £1m on rebranding and refurbishing its existing shop estate.
The fresh investment follows a decade of sustained growth for the multi-channel operator, with latest figures from the year to April 30, 2016, showing sales up 9% per cent to £154m.
The last 12 months have seen the retailer invest £9m in 63 new shops and a new purpose-built store support office and distribution centre in the West Midlands
Chief executive Kevin Keaney said: “These are exciting times for The Works. Our discount proposition, coupled with our huge range of exciting products, is proving a real hit with consumers and helping us to continue rapid growth even when overall spending confidence is low.
“In contrast with many other retailers, we’re seeing surging sales on the high street, with plans to grow our estate by a further 60 stores over the next 12 months. We’re also experiencing fantastic growth online, with online sales growing by 35% over the last year.
“We’re bucking the trend and committed to sustaining this growth through further investment over the next 12 months and beyond, as we deliver our plan to become one of retails best growth stories.”
