Prom specialist to move to West Bromwich

Sonique is moving from Grand Central, Birmingham, to unit 7, Astle Retail Park, West Bromwich, to open a 3,600 sq ft unit – more than double the size of its existing store – after agreeing lease terms with national commercial property and investment company London and Cambridge Properties, nased in Kingswinford and which owns and manages the park.

The new store will also offer bridalwear, occasionwear and pageant gowns, as well as shoes and accessories.

It will showcase more than 2,500 prom dresses and will provide a VIP experience to customers.

The family-owned prom specialist, which opened in 2003 at Touchwood Shopping Centre in Solihull before moving to Bullring Birmingham and latterly Grand Central Birmingham, plans to open at the beginning of February. The premium dress store will join nationally known retailers at the park, including Gap Outlet, M&S Outlet, Pavers Shoes and Pure Gym.

A spokesman for Sonique said: “The move to Astle Retail Park marks an exciting new chapter for the business and we are looking forward to welcoming new and existing customers to the store.

“Our extensive collection draws people from all over the UK, with some customers travelling from as far away as Cornwall and Scotland. Moving to the bigger store means we can offer our customers the biggest dress choice in the area and provide a truly red carpet experience.

“We’ve grown our reputation on offering our customers a personalised service and our sales associates are known for their expertise and this will not just continue, but be even better.”

The store will have a catwalk runway, 10 spacious changing rooms, as well as two VIP changing areas, refreshments and a relaxed seating area.

Rakesh Joshi, asset manager at LCP, said: “Astle Retail Park is the ideal location for Sonique Dresses because it is close to the town centre and motorway networks for people travelling from further afield and there is ample parking for customers. We’re looking forward to welcoming them.”