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Makeover planned for intu Merry Hill

Shopping centres group intu has announced plans for a multi-million pound investment to transform the outside of Merry Hill.

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A view of the intu Merry Hill makeover

The Midlands' largest shopping centre, in Brierley Hill, bear Dudley, will be transformed as part of its latest phase.

intu Merry Hill, which attracts around 18 million visitors a year, will see more than £10 million invested to transform the main entrance.

Plans include installation of a large-format screen above the main entrance, as well as energy-saving LED lights that can change the colour of the centre’s exterior walls.

It marks the latest phase of a plan to make the shopping destination more sustainable, more accessible and more attractive to customers and retailers.

A view of the planned new exterior of intu Merry Hill

In recent years, the centre in Brierley Hill has introduced free, high bandwidth WiFi, redeveloped its car parks and bus station and made facilities more accessible to those with disabilities.

A planning application for the project was submitted on Monday and, subject to planning approval being given by Dudley Council, work is set to begin in February.

'Bringing joy'

Dan Murphy, regional centre manager at intu Merry Hill, said: “The start of a shopping experience at any intu centre is all about bringing joy and creating a sense of occasion.

"With over 18 million people visiting intu Merry Hill every year we wanted to do just that.

"The refurbishment of our main entrance is the next phase in our plans to develop the centre, allowing us to offer an even better experience for local customers and those based further afield.

“In the last year we’ve welcomed 20 new retailers to the centre, including huge new stores for Next and Primark, making this an even more attractive destination for shoppers.

An artist's impression of the new look shopping complex

"Our focus is to attract even more great brands to our mall and this redevelopment is just one of the ways we can achieve that.”

The centre has also expanded its food and drink offering in the past 12 months with PIZZASQR and Little Dessert Shop opening in the mall’s food court.

The Garrison Saloon Bar, a Peaky Blinders themed micro-pub named after the BBC series, is the latest bar to open its doors on the centre’s Waterfront area.

Merry Hill has welcomed thousands of visitors in the run up to Christmas

intu Merry Hill was recently named a top 10 shopping centre by data analytics company GlobalData according to research it carried out taking into account the requirements of both tenants and shoppers.

The shopping destination ranked eighth in a list of 50 centres, alongside eight other intu shopping centres in the top 20.

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