Yahoo News Peek behind the scenes of shopping park's huge new store earmarked for Sports Direct
Major works are continuing at Teesside Park on a huge new unit poised for Sports Direct.
Construction crews have been stripping back Unit 9A for several months to make way for a "brilliant new brand" in the former Laura Ashley, Argos, USC, and MenKind stores.
While the chain is set to move into the amalgamated building has not been confirmed, park plans drawn up by owner British Land state that Sports Direct will be taking over the site "soon."
A new picture taken from Teesside Park last week shows how the unit looks from the fence as construction teams continue to work on the site.
The sporting chain - which already has a store just metres from the unit under construction -announced last year it would be expanding into a new 40,000sq ft space.
Parent company Frasers Group revealed back in August that Sports Direct's current home would be taken over by designer chain Flannels following a huge refurb of the 20,000sq ft site.
How the building looked in October last year (Image: GOOGLE)
The luxury chain is known for selling a string of big-name designer brands including Stone Island, Boss, Gucci, Vivienne Westwood, Polo Ralph Lauren, DSquared2, and Palm Angels.
Two new leases were signed at the shopping park - with Frasers also announcing that GAME and Evans Cycles would be located within the new Sports Direct.
An exact opening date hasn't been confirmed - although bosses initially pinpointed a late 2024 launch date for the stores.
The face of Teesside Park is continuing to change with several new chains opening up in recent months, including beauty brand Lush, Asian eatery Wagamama, and the highly anticipated Primark launch in the former Mothercare.
There are also some huge openings expected in 2024 - including adventure park Ninja Warrior, which is taking over the former Rainbow Casino, and PureGym at the former Millennium nightclub.
Catherine Furlong, centre director at Teesside Park, previously said: “There’s been a wealth of new openings confirmed over the past 12 months and this is another major announcement for us.
"Flannels has a fantastic luxury brand portfolio, while the expansion of Sports Direct means their store will be bigger and better than ever. We can’t wait for the doors to open on the new stores - it’s a very exciting period for Teesside Park and our visitors!”
Michael Murray, chief executive of Frasers Group, added: “We are big believers in physical retail and our significant investment demonstrates not only our commitment to the Elevation Strategy but also our innovative approach to rethinking large retail spaces to make them fit for the future.
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"With each new store opening, we seek to set the benchmark for outstanding regional retail as we continue to bring the world’s most aspirational brands, product innovations, and customer experiences to regional consumers across the UK.”
Darren Richards, head of real estate at British Land, also said at the time: “These new lettings across our regional retail portfolio clearly demonstrate the strength of the retail park format and Meadowhall’s appeal as a super-regional centre.
"These brands are successfully evolving to meet the ever-changing demands of the consumer, and we look forward to working closely with Frasers Group as it continues to roll out its Elevation Strategy.”
