Kent regional chain HomePlus Furniture is to become the new tenant of the former Marks and Spencer store in Ashford.
The six-store chain has agreed a 15-year lease for the premises and hopes to be open in time for Christmas. The store has been empty since May 2019.
‘It has taken a long time but we were determined to get it. We are going to smarten up the shop so it will be a whole new experience from what people had when it was M&S. I’d like to open before Christmas and we will make a difference to the town centre,’ says Martin Rose, HomePlus owner.
He says about £200,000 will be spent of the store, with its 25,000sqft ground floor used for retailing and the first floor for warehousing.
The past few months has seen the company move from its former B&Q store in the town, which was demolished, to a former Argos store, which it will leave in the New Year.
‘We will have certain opportunities in the store for concessions to come in and trade with us. It needs to be something that complements what we do, something that doesn’t conflict with us. We don’t want to turn it into a bazaar.’
