Using the former John Lewis At Home site, the Croydon 38,000sqft clothing store and foodhall is the first of 20 stores being opened by Marks and Spencer in 2023
Ready and waiting: Purley Way will be the first of 20 new stores M&S is opening this year
Marks and Spencer has announced Thursday April 27 as the official opening day for its new store on the Purley Way.
Local shoppers are set to enjoy a spacious new clothing department and a new-look, marketplace-feel 16,000sqft foodhall – taking up nearly half of the store’s 38,000sqft floor space – that is designed, the company says, “to deliver a bigger, better and fresher experience than ever before”.
The new store is at 330 Purley Way, what was a John Lewis At Home store until it closed in 2020. It is designed as an out-of-town store, offering “generous” parking off the busy A23. The company has so far made no statement regarding the status of its flagship town centre store in the Whitgift Centre.
As well as creating 150 jobs, “the new-look M&S Purley Way store represents a significant investment in Croydon’s local economy and follows the retailer’s recent announcement that it plans to invest about £500million in its store rotation programme, creating more than 3,400 jobs nationwide”, the company said in an announcement this morning.
Purley Way will be the first of 20 new M&S stores that are due to open this year.
Open all-hours: the Purley Way M&S will be open 12 hours a day Monday to Saturday
“The store will include fresh product displays full of the best quality, great value produce grown by M&S Select Farmers, and a large in-store bakery to serve pastries and fresh bread all day, including the new M&S Collection Sourdough,” the company said.
Using the latest technology, and the company’s shopping app, as well as regular check outs, there will also be a mobile “Scan and Shop” option available which lets signed-up shoppers skip the queues altogether. Digital screens in store will also make it quicker and easier to click and collect orders from the company’s website.
“I can’t wait to welcome the local community in to visit the store and see it all for themselves,” Camilla Harris, the Purley Way store manager, told Inside Croydon.
“Whether you’re looking for a big family food shop, the latest spring and summer styles from our clothing department, or a speedy option for collecting your M&S.com order with our digital Click & Collect service – we’ve got you covered.”
The store is located at 330 Purley Way, London, CR0 4XJ and will be open Monday to Saturday from 8am to 10pm, and 11am to 5pm on Sundays.
Follow M&S Purley Way on Facebook to stay up to date with all the latest news in the lead up to the opening day.
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Looking forward to this store opening and being able to get to it easily. At least one chain is looking to the future. I hope tey are looking after the staff at the North end branch as they were very helpful and put themselves out during the lockdowns for us to shop safely there.
Easy to get to if you have a car
Another nail in the coffin of the town centre as M&S move to an out of town car park.
It’s a conclusion we at iC Towers reached about 1sec after M&S announced that they were taking the Purley Way site last year. Having said that, M&S have so far held the line that they will continue to trade from North End.
Given the decade of Whitgift Foundation and Croydon Tory-induced development blight in the town centre, let’s see how long it takes for trade at the Purley Way store to convince M&S management, or the next leak in the Whitgift Centre roof, that time is up.