Fosse Park M&S celebrates 35 years - where it started, how it's changed and what's next
When M&S opened its flagship store at Fosse Park in October 1989, there were just three other businesses at the shopping destination - ASDA, McDonalds and Habitat, with World of Leather and Next planned to arrive soon after. In the 35 years since then, it has become the go-to out-of-town destination for everyone from bargain hunters to people seeking the latest designer brands.
But the shopping park we know today could have been very different if a highly controversial development called Centre 21 had gone ahead at the site. Leicester's city mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, was involved in the battle against the scheme, and remembers the fallout well. He said Centre 21, which he believes was to be named after the nearby Junction 21 on the M1, or perhaps the then looming new century, was so contentious that legal action was taken to stop it going ahead.
Today, Habitat and World of Leather are long gone from Fosse Park, and a host of other names have arrived and departed over the years. But the flagship M&S remains - and, just like Fosse Park itself, has recently undergone a huge refurb and expansion.
To help mark the store's 35th anniversary, we spoke to manager Andy Frith about the shop's history, present and future. We also spoke to Sir Peter about the then futuristic-sounding Centre 21, and about Fosse Park itself and its impact on Leicester. Here is what they had to say.
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What was the Centre 21 proposal and what happened to its development?
“The original proposal in the early 1980s was a development which was, to the best of my knowledge, three or four times the size of what was actually built," said Sir Peter. "And both the city and the county councils objected to the plans at the time. I was city council leader when the city and county councils were contesting [the Centre 21 development] through the courts."
Ultimately, the scheme was rejected, and a much smaller development was approved, "which is what we now know as Fosse Park", said the mayor. But at the time, out-of-town shopping centres were becoming all the rage, and the councils' robust objection to Centre 21 had an impact on the city centre.
"During the several years it was being fought through the courts and the planning process, the city centre was quite significantly blighted," said Sir Peter. "Nobody wanted to develop in the city centre. The fashionable view was that the future was out of town shopping centres."
Leicester was not the only city affected by the drive for out-of-town shopping centres. “Quite a lot of city centres did suffer permanent damage," said Sir Peter. "Some of them never recovered."
But in Leicester, when Fosse Park was eventually given approval, "almost immediately, the blight was lifted". As an example, he said, in the mid-1980s St Martins Shopping Centre was developed. The centre became known, as it still is today, for its independent shops, bars and restaurants. “That was built on land the council owned, and in keeping with the surrounding area," said Sir Peter. "The development complemented Fosse Park, and was an investment in a more traditional city centre, which was in sharp contrast to the big superstores that were being built out of the city.
“Then, on the momentum that was created by the St Martin's development, we were able to develop what was then called the Shires Shopping Centre, the first element of what became Highcross. Unlike many other cities, we preserved all of the frontages onto the High Street because we didn't just want an out of town shopping centre in the middle of the city.”
“The legendary John Dean, chief city planning officer was very important in all of this," he added. "John used our planning powers, first of all, to oppose Centre 21 and then to make sure that the development in the city centre went with the grain of the city rather than seeking to try and replace it with something that was brash.
“It was John who really made it possible for St Martins and The Lanes to become the thriving independent business area that it is today. And that was the vision.”
Meanwhile, back at Fosse Park...
M&S was enjoying success at the growing out-of-town centre, which is located in Blaby district. But time moves on, and with it, the demands and expectations of shoppers.
"As regular customers will know, M&S at Fosse Park has undergone changes and updates over the years, but visitors could be forgiven for thinking it needed a bit of a spruce," said former Leicester Mercury shopping writer Linda Steelyard. "Everything was a bit hemmed in, the shop was a bit annoying to get around compared to some other department stores and the lighting could have been better.
"Fortunately, at around the time the city branch shut - which I was gutted about - the flagship store was emerging from a huge makeover, which has seen it completely redesigned.
"The cafe is no longer squashed at the back of the shop like an afterthought, but takes pride of place at the front of the store, and has an outside seating area. It has a view, too - of the car park, but still.
"Shoppers collecting orders no longer have to join a huge queue at a counter seemingly forced into a windowless cupboard, but simply press a couple of buttons on wall-hung terminals. There are self-service tills, a bigger beauty area, a relatively huge new food hall and the womenswear area has expanded into the former New Look.
"The store is spacious, beautifully lit and bang up to date. I couldn't believe it when I went there for the first time. It's nothing like any M&S I've seen before."
The store covered 62,000 sq ft in the 1980s, and is now more than 100,000 sq ft. That's not far off one-and-a-half full size football pitches.
Mr Frith said: “Originally, the store would have had womenswear and menswear departments, but they definitely would not have been as extensive as they are now. We've moved womenswear into the new unit [which used to be New Look], and with the advent of third party brands as well, this has added to our range.
“We've got these amazing fitting rooms down in womenswear now that are absolutely world class. They include accessible and parent and child fitting rooms.
“Beauty is a massive new area too. We've got a number of new brands, including Color Wow, which is very trendy at the minute [..]. So beauty [overall] has enlarged by approximately 50 per cent.
“On menswear, we've got the biggest Autograph section I’ve seen in M&S, and we love it. Then we've got lots of new ranges in lingerie as well, and Home.
“The coffee shop has a complete new look. It's definitely [got] more of a bespoke menu. The food hall as well just looks completely different in terms of the whole design. The range would have been significantly smaller 35 years ago, as the area has doubled in size.
“We’ve got a much bigger in-store bakery, and dedicated aisles of gluten free products [...] and vegan range Plant Kitchen that's got its own aisle. And, we're one of only three shops that has got a dedicated organic shop as well.
“And then we have got the most amazing water wall, where we offer so many different varieties of bottled water, beautiful bottles from different countries around the world. And it looks fantastic."
“I think the business has always wanted to make [the branch] bigger because of the customer demand in this area," added Mr Frith. "It's got quite a unique location, next to the M1. It’s probably the biggest M&S around, and not only attracts customers from Leicester itself, but it attracts far more customers from the surrounding areas."
But, not everything has changed. “We have got some [members of staff] that would have been here on opening day in the ‘80s," he said. "There's a lot of long service in the store, actually." Among them is Rachel, who started working for M&S in July 1988, when she was 16. She began in the city centre's Gallowtree Gate store on a Youth Training Scheme, better known as a YTS. Originally the scheme was meant to run for 12 months, but she left the scheme within six months and given a permanent role with the company. She said: “The Fosse Park team throughout the years have become my family.”
How would Mr Frith describe the store today?
“I think it is the most inspiring place to shop," he said. "In my opinion, the new facade of the building and how it feels when you come through the front door...it's the most iconic M&S building. I love it.
“What I would say - I know you'll be aware of the unfortunate closing of Leicester in the town centre, but we have taken on a significant number of those colleagues into the Fosse Park store and they're really loving being here, which has been great."
Asked how he would describe an M&S customer today, Mr Frith said: “Someone who understands great quality at great prices. I do not think there is a specific age group anymore, because I feel like we have got quite a broad appeal.”
So, what's the difference between someone who shops at Fosse Park and someone who shops in the city centre?
We went back to Sir Peter for the answer. “What's very interesting is that they're often the same people," he said. "They're just going for different types of experience. You get people who say, ‘I never go to Fosse Park', or, 'I never go to the city centre’, but by and large they're the same people doing different things.”
Looking to the future - how will the city centre and Fosse Park change over the next 35 years? Forty years on from the battle over Centre 21, will out-of-town shopping kill city centres - and Leicester in particular - after all?
“I think the challenge for all city centres is to recognise that retailing will always be at the heart of what they do," Sir Peter said. "But they have to have a much broader offer than just retail shops.
“And increasingly, we've seen new things happening in the city centre, from climbing walls to cricket to crazy golf. A place for people to spend not just their day, but also their evenings. [...] And people are coming to visit the King Richard III Centre, and in the future, we will have the opportunity to welcome visitors back to a dramatically transformed Jewry Wall to talk about the 400 years of the history of Roman Britain.”
The fact that shoppers' tastes and preferences move on was made starkly obvious when the longstanding M&S branch in Leicester city centre closed earlier this year. The shop used to be half its final size, but when department store Lewis’s, in Humberstone Gate, closed, "M&S expanded their shop into the space that was made available, and that helped bring new life to that side of the city centre", Sir Peter said.
"It’s one of the things I've said about the departure of M&S," he added. "When Lewis’s closed, people said, ‘Oh, that's the end of the city centre’. Well, of course it wasn't, because M&S themselves expanded and went into it. And I'm absolutely convinced that similar things will happen to the [empty] M&S store."
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