May 2010

EAGER shoppers flocked in their hundreds to Dorking's newest store when it opened for business on Saturday.

Queues built up throughout the day as curious customers waited for a glimpse inside The Original Factory Shop.

The discount department store has taken over the prime High Street occupied by Woolworths, which closed 16 months ago after a 75 year stint in the town.

The store has undergone a £200,000 refit and goods on offer include electrical items, homewares, toys, gifts, beauty products and clothing.

Shop manager Gaby Brennerova said the amount of interest at the opening had exceeded all expectations, and that she had received great feedback from customers.

She added: "We thought it would be busy but not as busy as it was. You couldn't move at some points or even get from one end of the shop to the other.

"Demand never really died down. Takings were excellent."

The new shop has created 15 jobs, although the manager said if demand continues, more staff may be recruited.

Shopper Alan Browne, who lives off Dorking High Street, said he hopes the store will breathe new life into the town.

He added: "I was intrigued so decided to have a look. I thought it was good. If it brings people into the High Street that can only be a good thing."

But Julia Barker, 72, from Pixham, was not as keen.

She said: "There wasn't much on offer and I thought the aisles were too narrow if you've got a trolley. I didn't find it that much cheaper than elsewhere."

Colin Leggatt, marketing director for the chain, said: "We are delighted with how the store has started and look forward to playing our part in helping to keep Dorking a great place to shop."

The Factory Shop is open seven days a week and currently has three branches in Surrey, but has plans to open 500 new outlets nationwide by 2020.
 

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A DEPARTMENT store chain has invested £250,000 in Tredegar town centre and created 20 jobs in the process.

The Original Factory Shop opened has snapped up 27 former Woolworth stores, including a branch in the shopping centre which officially opened yesterday (Tuesday, May 18)

The store sells a mix of High Street brands and own-brand products.

The company now has over 130 sites across the UK.

Area Manager, Fran Araghi, is confident that the store will breathe new life into Tredegar town centre and will play an important role in the local community.

“There’s already a real buzz around town about us opening,” she said. “Our aim is to be an integral and valuable member of the community, an active member of it, supporting local people in as many ways as we can”.

This community-based philosophy has been central to The Original Factory Shop’s success to date, as it has grown into one of the UK’s most popular value retailers, with expansion plans that will see 30 more stores open across the country this year.
 

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An iconic building at the centre Milford Haven’s town is set to re-open its doors next month.

Work is already underway on the former Woolworths building on Charles Street, which will open as The Original Factory Shop.

The chain of discount shops, which already has a store in Snowdrop Lane, Haverfordwest, will officially open the new Milford Haven shop for business on Tuesday, June 22 and will stock everything from homeware, clothing, DVD’s garden equipment, electricals and shoes.

Milford Haven mayor, Councillor Tony Eden, said the news was excellent and hoped it would ‘breathe new life’ into the town’s high street.

“We are fighting for regeneration in the town particularly in Charles Street and I hope this is the start of better things to come and will encourage other businesses to take up other unoccupied premises on the street,” he said.
 

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A retail chain now with two branches in Wharfedale has reported industry-leading growth for the recently ended financial year.

Low price department store The Original Factory Shop saw its second year of more than 25 per cent profit growth with sales up 35 per cent to £132m (2009: £99m) and like-for-like sales up 17 per cent.

The effort has been boosted by the store in Ilkley, and the chain recently opened another outlet in Otley. The chain created more than 700 jobs last year and is confident of having as many as 500 stores by 2020, with 35 planned to open in the current financial year.

Ilkley store manager Carol Heaps said: “We are delighted with the contribution the Ilkley store made to the company’s success last year. It shows that we are providing what the people of Ilkley want – a wide range of goods at very affordable prices.

“No other UK retailer fits our model of being a national major non-food convenience retailer operating in local markets. Customers voted with their feet last year, as we expanded not only our store network, but also our brand and product offering.

She said the Ilkley store, like all others in the chain, has worked hard at making a positive contribution to the local com-munity. Each store chooses to support a charity or good cause of its choice each year.

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PAIGNTON is predicting a prosperous summer, with numerous big-name national companies opening their doors in coming weeks.

Ahead of the Original Factory Shop opening in the old Rossiters store next month, Costa Coffee has announced it begins trading in Victoria Street on Wednesday.

Shopfitting work will be completed this week after a successful change-of-use planning application.

Bettesworths and Stratton Creber Commercial acted in joint instruction on the premises.

Paul Bettesworth said: "Costa are already represented in Torquay and I think it is a real shot in the arm for Paignton that such a strong national retailer sees the town as a target destination to open a store in the current economic climate.

"It is also another positive message to owners of High Street retail property that there are occupiers happy to consider the Torbay area, and we can find them.

"It is all too widely known that retailers' demand for new locations has been minimal in the last couple of years and, although there is not yet a charge for multiple acquisitions, lettings such as this illustrate that decent opportunities will be considered.

"The arrival of big names such as H&M and HMV support this.

"Victoria Street has a much more vibrant feel now, with very few shops remaining vacant.

"The feeling is more positive in Torquay also, with several new lettings and substantial freehold sales being agreed in Union Street and Union Square Shopping Centre."

Matthew Clarke, spokesman for the Paignton Business Partnership, also predicted a bright future for the town's economy. He said: "We welcome the timing of these new businesses coming to Paignton.

"The town's looking full of shoppers, and Wetherspoons in Torquay Road is being refurbished, Stead and Simpson is doubling its size in Victoria Street and we've got two purpose-built hotels coming.

"Let's just hope the owners of Crossways can do something productive there," he said.
 

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17 May 2010 by Plymouth Herald

WORKERS are pressing ahead with a major revamp of Paignton's old Rossiters store — aiming for an opening date of June 15.

The prime-site store has been taken over by national chain Original Factory Shop, which specialises in clothing, sportswear, electricals and beauty products.

For more than six months the company has been keen to move in, but complications with the lease meant plans were put on hold.

All legal obstructions have now been removed, however, and the £250,000 refurbishment is under way.

Colin Leggatt, marketing director, said: "All the issues are resolved and we're looking forward to opening our doors in Paignton on June 15.

"That's the official date we're working towards. We're really pleased that after all the hard work, we'll be having a good summer in Paignton."

The company will take over the Palace Avenue site's lower two floors on a long-term lease, while the remaining floors will be unoccupied.

Rossiters will continue to own the 2,900-square-metre building, which ceased trading under the family name in 2009 after 150 years.

Mr Leggatt said the opening day will be marked by "special offers, a prize draw, balloons and sweets for the children".
 

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14 May 2010 by SouthWest Business

TWENTY new jobs have been created with the opening of a new store in Penicuik town centre.
The Original Factory Shop, the low price department store chain, has pledged it will be an integral part of the local community.

The company, which has more than 130 sites across the UK, states it is committed to small town centre shopping at a time when many other big businesses are moving to out-of-town retail parks.

Area manager Fiona Leishman is confident that the new store will breathe new life into Penicuik town centre and in these testing economic times will play a very important role in the local community.

Win £150 worth of Original Factory shop vouchers in this week's Advertiser. On sale now.

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13 May 2010 by Janet Bee , Midlothian Advertiser

The Original Factory Shop, which describes itself as a "local, low-price department store", opened its new store in Wells on Tuesday – and made a pledge to be an integral part of the local community.

The company, which has more than 130 sites across the UK, is committed to small, town-centre shopping in an era when many other big businesses are moving to out-of-town shopping centres. It has already snapped up 26 of the former Woolworths stores, including the Wells branch, located at 41 High Street.

The Original Factory Shop's sales strategy mixes high-street brands such as Adidas, Olay and Gossard at heavily-discounted prices, together with an extensive range of "cut label" and own-brand products.

The new store has packed a lot into the old building. The shop has done away with the old mezzanine section and replaced it with an upper floor packed with shoes, toys, electrical and household goods.

The racks of budget-priced clothes and accessories were an instant hit with shoppers in the city and as soon as the doors opened there were plenty who wanted to see what the store had to offer.

The 7,200 sq ft store is described as stocking "a value product mix that is proving popular in the current retail climate".

Area manager Helen Fildes said she was confident the new store will breathe new life into Wells town centre and will play a very important role in the local community.

"There's already a real buzz around town about us opening and the feeling is that our blend of great value and unbeatable prices will make us a firm favourite with local and visiting shoppers alike" she said.

"Our aim is to be an integral and valuable member of the community."
 

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13 May 2010 by SouthWest Business

The joys of tilling the soil have been unearthed for adults with learning disabilities following a donation of allotment land and gardening supplies.

Elizabeth FitzRoy Support, which helps adults with autism and Down's syndrome, has been given use of the plot by a landowner at East Barsham, near Fakenham.

The Fakenham branch provides care and support to about 60 people, either in their own homes or at the charity's day centre at Hall Staithe.

About two-thirds of them have taken the opportunity to plant potatoes, runner beans and carrots at their new allotment since they started work on it last month.

This week they accepted seeds, tools and gardening gloves from the Original Factory Shop in Fakenham.

Senior support worker Chris White said: "As a charity we're there to help adults with learning difficulties to have fulfilling lives, and this is just brilliant for these guys.

"We hope to grow things we can eat and hopefully then get enough to be able to sell some on Fakenham Market."

The landowner, who did not wish to be named, offered the use of the plot through the Landshare scheme championed by TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

The charity eventually hopes to expand its allotment to include benches, compost bins or even greenhouses, but Mr Smith said the most immediate need was for more spades, hoes, rakes and forks.
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Discount department stores in Maryport and Wigton have helped their owner rack up record sales.

The Original Factory Shop, which operates branches in both towns, said sales in the year to March 28 rose 35 per cent to £132m.

Profit in the same period grew 25 per cent, the company said.

Bosses have described the performace as “industry-leading growth”.

The business, which sells branded merchandise with discounts of up to 70 per cent, and a wide range of fashion, homeware, electricals and toiletries, is in the process of aggressive new store openings bolstered by the increasing number of bargain-hungry shoppers.

It claims to have created 700 new jobs.

Cumbria area manager Caroline Welch said: “We are delighted with the contribution the Wigton and Maryport stores made to the company’s success last year.

“It shows that we are providing what the people of Wigton and Maryport want – a wide range of goods at very affordable prices.

“Everyone loves a bargain, especially in these testing times, and there is something for everyone in store.

“No other UK retailer fits our model of being a national major non-food convenience retailer operating in local markets.

“Customers voted with their feet last year, as we expanded not only our store network but also our brand and product offering.

“In particular, we were pleased to strengthen our fashion offering through the launch of our own brands ‘Mimosa’ and ‘Headland’, as well as stocking quality brands such as Yves Saint Laurent and K Swiss.

“We are able to bring a collection of well known brands to local high streets.

“The Wigton and Maryport stores, like all our stores, worked hard at making a positive contribution to the local community from where we draw both our customers and our employees.”
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Stourport branch helps boost store group's growth

THE Stourport branch of The Original Factory Shop has helped the firm report growth for the year ended March, 2010.

The company saw its second year of over 25 per cent profit growth, with sales up 35 per cent, to £132 million and like-for-like sales up 17 per cent. Sales for 2009 had been £99 million.

Store manager, Michelle Newman, said: “We are delighted with the contribution the Stourport store made to the company's success last year.”

She added: “The Stourport store, like all our stores, worked hard at making a positive contribution to the local community, from where we draw both our customers and our colleagues.

“We were delighted to create over 700 jobs last year and our Make a Difference charity campaign encourages us and every store to support a local charity or good cause of their choice.

“We are an ambitious, scalable, unique UK retailer and are confident we will have a chain of 500 stores by 2020.

“We are encouraged by our strong start to the new financial year, plan to open 35 stores, which will create up to 600 jobs, and view the opportunities in the year ahead very positively.”

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THE Lancaster branch of The Original Factory Shop chain has played a major role in a sales surge, its manager has said.

Stuart Flint, who runs the discount department store on Wyresdale Road, said he was “delighted” with the branch’s contribution to a 35% rise in sales from £99m last year to £132m.

He said: “No other UK retailer fits The Original Factory Shop model of being a national major non-food convenience retailer operating in local markets and our customers have voted with their feet and kept coming back to us.”

Fast-growing discount retailer The Original Factory Shop has identified 400 locations for new stores as it steps up its ambitious expansion programme with a goal of 500 branches by 2020.

The Burnley-based chain unveiled its plans as it posted a 31 per cent rise in annual underlying pre-tax profits for the year to March 28.

It said earnings rose from £11.2m to a record £14.7m as revenues climbed 35 per cent, from £99m to £132m. It was the firm’s fifth consecutive year of double-digit profits growth.

The group added 30 stores during the year to take the number of outlets to 134, and plans openings in Sidmouth, Devon; Penicuik, Midlothian; Wells, Somerset; Tredegar, south Wales; Warwick; Dorking, Surrey and Bolsover, Derbyshire; over the next month.

The openings last year created over 500 jobs.

During this financial year, the retailer expects to launch a total of 35 branches, generating up to 600 jobs nationwide.

It also plans to double the size of its warehouse facilities to cater for its growth strategy.

The Original Factory Shop sells clothing, homewares, furniture, toys, gifts and beauty products, and most of its shops are in smaller towns.

Sales of branded goods, including Roc, Yves Saint Laurent, Sketchers and Rocket Dog, account for 35 per cent of revenues – and the chain launched its own-label fashion ranges last year including Mimosa womenswear and Headlands menswear.

The group sees major growth from personal care products and everyday consumer items across household, health and beauty, accessories, toys and childrenswear.

Chief executive Angela Spindler said: “We have a financially strong business focused on achieving strong organic growth by adopting an aggressive store opening plan, funded by our strong cash generation.

“No other UK retailer fits our model of being a national major non-food convenience retailer operating in local markets.

“Customers voted with their feet last year, as we expanded not only our store network but also our brand and product offering.

“We are encouraged by our strong start to the new financial year and view the opportunities in the year ahead positively.”

The Original Factory Shop, which currently employs 2,100 staff, was established in 1969 and underwent a £69m secondary management buyout in 2007 backed by Duke Street.
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The Original Factory Shop is to step up expansion after recording a 35% increase in sales to £132m for the year to March 28.

Like-for-like sales at the 134-shop retailer were up 7% and EBITDA rose 31% to £14.7m. This strong cash generation will fund its store opening plan.

The Original Factory Shop chief executive Angela Spindler told The Times: “We are confident we will have a chain of 500 stores by 2020. The kind of places we like to trade from are what you might call the forgotten high streets of Britain.” She said these locations are small towns where the population is less than 20,000 or on the edges of larger towns.

The retailer has so far identified 400 UK sites it could expand to. It expects to open about 35 stores during this financial year. Of these, six will open before the end of the month. It also plans to almost double the size of its warehouse facilities, adding an additional 104,000 sq ft to cope with this expansion.

Spindler said that, of the new stores, about eight would be former Woolworths sites. The retailer opened 30 new stores during the year, of which 22 were in former Woolworths outlets.

She added that the rest would probably be identified on an individual basis: “There are some sites currently available, such as those which were previously part of Ethel Austin, although they are too small for us. There’s also Au Naturale, although they are not really in the right location.

“What we have tended to do more is to identify sites that we can develop - in the past, we have opened in former bowling alleys, cinemas, stations and car dealerships. So we are not dependent on acquiring sites by picking them up from other retailers.”

Spindler said The Original Factory Shop - owned by Duke Street Capital - does not have immediate plans to float. “We are not really looking at exit plans because we have so many growth opportunities as we are.”

The Original Factory Shop plans to increase its workforce by nearly 50 per cent this year by opening 35 new stores and doubling the size of its warehouses.

The Burnley-based non-food convenience store chain has just posted sales of £132m in the year to March 28, up 35 per cent. Like for like sales rose 7 per cent. Ebitda was up 31 per cent to £14.7m, the fifth year on the trot of double-digit profit growth and a second year of plus-25 per cent ebitda growth.

The chain, which describes itself as a “low-price local department store”, sells men's, women's and children's clothing, homewares, electricals and toiletries and trades in small towns with a population of less than 20,000.

It currently has 134 stores and employs 2,100 people, but has a target of 500 stores by 2020. It opened 30 new stores during the year to March, 22 of them in former Woolworths premises.

Angela Spindler, who took over from George Foster as chief executive in January last year, said:

“We are delighted with our performance last year. We have a financially strong business focused on achieving strong organic growth by adopting an aggressive store opening plan, funded by our strong cash-generation.

“No other UK retailer fits our model of being a national major non-food convenience retailer operating in local markets. Customers voted with their feet last year, as we expanded not only our store network in the year but also our brand and product offering.”

The Original Factory Shop began life in 1969 as a surplus out let for Peter Black's but was acquired by Duke Street Capital in 2007 in a £69m secondary buyout from Barclays Capital

The Original Factory Shop, a ‘local department store,’ is stepping into the breach in small towns and has big plans

The Original Factory Shop expects to create up to 1,000 jobs this year as the non-food convenience retailer steps up its store opening programme.

The business, which employs 2,100 people across 134 stores and at its head office in Burnley, Lancashire, expects to open about 35 stores during this financial year.

Of these, six will open before the end of the month, while the company, owned by Duke Street Capital, the private equity firm, also plans to almost double the size of its warehouse facilities in order to service expected demand.

Angela Spindler, chief executive of The Original Factory Shop, said that the business — which sells men’s, women’s and children’s fashions as well as homewares, electricals and toiletries — was eventually eyeing about 500 stores nationwide.

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She told The Times: “We are confident we will have a chain of 500 stores by 2020. We are what I would describe as a low-price local department store, which is a relatively new category, and the kind of places we like to trade from are what you might call the forgotten high streets of Britain.

“Ideally, these are locations where the population is less than 20,000 — they are small towns, which tends to go hand in hand with fairly small levels of competition, or on the edges of larger towns. Having a food retailer near by helps.

“Our customers like to visit very frequently, like a convenience store. A good example is Campbeltown in Argyll. It is a long drive for people to go and access branded clothing, jewellery and cosmetics.

“We are pretty much evenly distributed across the country — we go from Scotland right down to Cornwall, as well as Northern Ireland, the Midlands and East Anglia. The only place you won’t find us is in the big cities. Having said that, we have just opened our first store inside the M25, in Debden in Essex, which is trading brilliantly.”

Ms Spindler said that, of the new stores, about eight would be former Woolworths sites. However, she added, the rest would probably be identified on an individual basis: “There are some sites currently available, such as those which were previously part of Ethel Austin, although they are too small for us. There’s also Au Naturel, although they are not really in the right location.

“What we have tended to do more is to identify sites that we can develop — in the past, we have opened in former bowling alleys, cinemas, stations and car dealerships. So we are not dependent on acquiring sites by picking them up from other retailers.”

She was speaking as The Original Factory Shop reported sales of £132 million for the year to March 28, an increase of 35 per cent on the same period a year earlier and up 7 per cent on a like-for-like basis, which strips out the impact of refurbishments and new store openings. Earnings before taxation, interest, depreciation and amortisation rose by 31 per cent to £14.7 million.

Ms Spindler said that it was the fifth consecutive year of double-digit profit growth and the second year running that ebitda had risen by more than 25 per cent. The company opened 30 new stores during the year, of which 22 were in former Woolworths outlets, creating 700 jobs. She added: “We are delighted with our performance last year. We have a financially strong business focused on achieving strong organic growth by adopting an aggressive store opening plan, funded by our strong cash-generation.

“No other UK retailer fits our model of being a national major non-food convenience retailer operating in local markets. Customers voted with their feet last year, as we expanded not only our store network in the year but also our brand and product offering.

“This is a business which has shown that it can continue to grow during both good times and during a recession. It never misses a beat.”

Ms Spindler, who joined the business in January last year, said that while The Original Factory Shop stocked well-known brands such as adidas, Ben Sherman, Morphy Richards, Silentnight and L’Oréal, she had been pleased by the way the company’s newly launched own brands Mimosa and Headland had traded during the year.

She added that there were no immediate plans for the business to float: “We are not really looking at exit plans because we have so many growth opportunities as we are.”

Original story

? The Original Factory Shop was established in 1969 as part of Peter Black’s — selling over-makes, which are surplus to the original order, and seconds made for Marks & Spencer Barclays Capital bought a 70 per cent stake for £18.5 million in 2004 and, in December 2007, Duke Street backed a £69 million management buyout

Graduating from Asda’s academy

Angela Spindler is another of a well-established cadre of executives in British business to have worked under Archie Norman, below, and Allan Leighton at Asda. Ms Spindler, whose early career was at Pedigree Pet Foods — owned by Mars, where Mr Leighton was previously a senior executive — and Cadbury Schweppes.

She joined Asda in 1997 and worked her way up the ranks, first as trading and marketing director and then from 2005 as global managing director of the George fashion label, where she signed personalities such as Andrew and Rachael Flintoff and Coleen McLoughlin as the “faces” of George.

Ms Spindler left Asda in August 2007 and resurfaced in February 2008 as managing director of Debenhams, the department store chain, where she was immediately tipped to succeed Rob Templeman as chief executive.

However, when it became apparent that Mr Templeman would not be leaving as early as anticipated, Ms Spindler moved on in November 2008 after nine months. She joined The Original Factory Shop just under three months later.

Ms Spindler said that she had been pleasantly surprised about many aspects of life at her latest berth: “I’ve always worked for bigger businesses. Here at The Original Factory Shop, I’ve a smaller team and probably a less well-known brand, but I have been surprised how much I have enjoyed it.”