Sale frenzy as shoppers mark end of Woolies

Published on Friday 12 December 2008 09:13

IT was the closing down sale of the century.

Woolworths, a high street institution for almost 100 years, slashed prices at stores across the Lothians and drove bargain hunters crazy.

Police were called to the Big W branch at The Jewel after droves of shoppers brought traffic to a standstill, and forced the closure of a road.

Other stores across the city saw huge queues attracted by the promise of up to 50 per cent off everything, announced by the firm's administrator Deloitte.

One shop assistant told the Evening News: "It's been non-stop all day. I've never seen anything like it."

It came as it emerged a string of retail chains are lining up moves for the five Woolworths stores in the Capital.

The leases of the stricken company's city stores are to be handed back to their landlords if they are not included in "batch sale" packages currently being discussed with companies including Tesco, Waitrose, Iceland and Poundland.

They would then be available on the open market on a store-by-store basis, with Scotmid, Lidl and Aldi understood to be waiting in the wings to swoop.

Property agents say they expect strong demand among retailers for the stores at Stockbridge, Lothian Road, Leith and Corstorphine.

But there is doubt about whether a company is likely to come in for the giant warehouse that currently houses Big W.

Tim Appleton, senior director of retail at property firm CB Richard Ellis, which is currently dealing with the sale of the stores on behalf of administrator Deloitte, said: "If you look at Raeburn Place, it is the biggest and most prominent store in Stockbridge. I cannot believe that one of the big food stores would not want to be there. It is the same with Corstorphine and Leith, and we have retailers with Lothian Road requirements.

"They are all very well placed and it is still very hard to get a big unit in the middle of a suburban or residential area."

Edinburgh-based Scotmid has confirmed that it is waiting to see which of the Capital stores are not within the batch deals and become available.

It is currently expanding both its convenience store portfolio and its Semi-Chem beauty chain and it is understood that it is showing a particular interest in the Stockbridge unit.

Discounted retailer Aldi, which is lining up its first Edinburgh store in Gorgie, is also understood to be interested in sites as it plans to open more than a dozen stores in the city.

The future of use of the stores was of little concern, however, to the throngs of shoppers who descended yesterday.

Police were called in after so much traffic arrived at Big W that cars were backed up on to the dual carriageway. An access road into the Milton Link retail park was closed from 10.30am until 1pm.

Shoppers who made it into the store were reportedly angry that all items were not discounted by 50 per cent as they had expected.

At the Lothian Road shop, a huge queue of shoppers tailed back the entire length of the store shortly before 5pm, with some customers saying they had faced a wait of up to 40 minutes before being served. Many shelves were nearly bare, especially those containing homewares, stationery, gift cards, confectionery and children's toys. However, a sign had been hastily erected, noting that it was "UP TO 50 per cent off, NOT 50 per cent off everything".