Musgrave NI, the owners of SuperValu, Centra, MACE and MarketPlace, has announced plans to open up to 20 new stores in Northern Ireland throughout 2019.

20 new stores

The new stores are part of a significant £28m investment that will also see it refit a further 40 stores over the 12 months, further building on Musgrave NI’s ongoing investment and growth strategy. The expansion plans are part of Musgrave NI’s vision to ‘redefine convenience’ by creating refreshed and modern stores.

As Musgrave NI seeks to convert retailers and buy new sites, the 20 new stores will be made up of a mix of brand new store developments and acquisitions. The retailer has completed more than 80 recent refreshes to stores in recent years, including Lilley’s Centra at Dublin Road, Enniskillen, Moran’s Centra Strand Road, Derry-Londonderry, Watson’s Centra Cloughey, SuperValu Comber and SuperValu Kings Road.

Michael McCormack, managing director of Musgrave NI, commented: “While 2018 was a good year, we know we can’t stand still. Our plans are ambitious but achievable. For us, this is all about how we’ll realise our vision to ‘redefine convenience’ in Northern Ireland. We have been working towards achieving this vision across our SuperValu, Centra and MACE brands; focusing on what matters to our shoppers – bringing healthier, restaurant quality food to convenience and continuously innovating across all aspects of convenience”.

Tapping into consumer trends

Musgrave NI plans to tap into consumer trends and the merging of retail and foodservice to achieve further growth throughout 2019, bringing more new concepts to Northern Ireland. The Caramico pizza concept uses authentic pizza ovens to offer freshly made pizza in-store. The concept has already been rolled out by Musgrave in the Republic of Ireland, with a focus on high-quality products and the food-for-now and food-for-later shopper missions. A rotisserie style chicken concept will also be rolled out following successful trials.

Over the last two years, Musgrave NI has also rolled out on-the-go coffee brand, Frank and Honest to 110 SuperValu, Centra and Mace stores across the country. Its Green Kitchen salad bar concept has also grown significantly, responding to consumer demand for fresher, healthier options.  

Want to know more?

We highlight our selection of some great convenience stores in our Retail execution in Northern Ireland report.

In our Latest thinking from Centra report, we showcase some of the latest thinking from Centra in stores around Cork and Limerick. We show how the Musgrave concepts and in-house brands can be adapted to service local needs and shopper missions.

Co-op has announced it will revamp and relaunch ten in-store coffee shops in partnership with Churchill Catering.

& Coffee

Co-op has signed a concession deal with Churchill Catering to relaunch ten coffee shops across its convenience store estate. The coffee shops will operate under the new brand name ‘& Coffee’, and will stock locally produced products, as well as offering tailored menus for breakfast and lunch. The shops will be redesigned to act as a community hub.

The first coffee shop will be rolled out at the Ridgeway store in Plymouth, with the launch programme running to the end of October for the additional stores. In addition to the Ridgeway store, the coffee shops being revamped and refitted are located in Heathfield, Holmfirth, Hove, Inverness, Louth, Peacehaven, Ryde, Wadebridge and Wickford.

Mark Pettigrew, Director of innovation & format at Co-op, commented: “We want the coffee shops to be a place for the community to meet and enjoy a range of quality drinks and snacks, all under the new ‘& Coffee’ banner. We’re really excited to be partnering with an expert in this field and to be able to offer our customers new reasons to visit us as we deliver a great new coffee experience”.

IGD Co-op Trade Briefing 2019

19 September, Manchester

Succeeding together. The supplier engagement day will help delegates learn practical ways to action Co-op’s strategy and will also give you the chance to help strengthen relationships and businesses together.

Find out more »

Regional co-operative retailer, Midcounties Co-operative has appointed Rupert Newman in the newly created role of chief retail officer. The retailer has also announced it is looking to expand its convenience store estate over the next three years.

Appointment of chief retail officer

Rupert Newman joins Midcounties Co-op from pharmaceutical company Celesio, where he was responsible for its UK sales operation and previously led projects for Alliance Boots. Before this, Newman held various positions at Sainsbury’s and Asda, including regional managing director for convenience stores. At Midcounties Co-op, he will take responsibility for its £600m food retail business.

Phil Ponsonby, group chief executive at Midcounties Co-op, commented: “Our food retail business is the largest of our trading groups and I am delighted to have secured the services of a first-class retail professional. We have ambitious plans to grow our store estate and to continuing innovating, particularly with the further development of our award-winning food markets which are centred on exceptional service quality and regionally sourced product ranges. Rupert has the operational and leadership track record to build on our recent successes and continue the growth and development of our food business”.

Convenience store expansion

Following the news of Rupert Newman’s appointment to chief retail officer, the society has revealed plans to open up to 80 new stores over the next three years. With eight new store openings so far this year, Midcounties Co-op now operates 160 convenience stores. The news also follows the retailer’s announcement in January that it has agreed a deal to purchase four of Warner’s Budgens food stores. The four stores are currently owned and operated by independent retailer Guy Warner, who opened his first store in Broadway in 2006. Under the terms of the deal, Warner will retail freehold ownership of the properties.