FOR Bournemouth to lose even one of its big department stores would once have been seen as a calamity for the town.

Three huge stores – Beales, House of Fraser and Debenhams – dominated shopping in the town for generations.

But two of those have now closed and a third is in a building that is up for sale.

BEALES

Bournemouth Echo:

The sight of the Beales building on Old Christchurch Road standing empty is still a shock for many locals.

The store had been in the town since 1881 and had been beloved by generations since, spawning a sister store, Bealesons, on Commercial Road.

Read more: 

A series of owners and management tried to get the business out from under its debts and make it more relevant to 21st  century shoppers.

The chain of Beales stores went into administration in January 2020. Its closing-down sales were so popular that administrators had to take on agency staff, but the Covid crisis brought the sales to an early halt.

The building has been acquired by a consortium of investors, East Cliff Properties, which is expected to submit a planning application before long.

It is suggesting a mix of uses, incorporating retail on the lower floors with upmarket flats above. There could be an indoor pool  and gym and residential parking.

Poole-based architect David James said last year: "We are hoping that what we are proposing is well received and that we can try to bring quite a lovely building back into use.”

DEBENHAMS

Bournemouth Echo:

Debenhams occupied another huge, purpose-built building.

It opened as Bobby & Co in 1915 but later became part of the Debenhams group and took the Debenhams name in 1972.

Read more:

In common with other retailers, Debenhams struggled in the face of high costs and changing shopping habits – mainly the rise of online retail.

The business went into administration and saw its name and stock bought by one of those online rivals, Boohoo. The new owner did not want any of the shop premises.

But the future for Bournemouth’s Debenhams looks set to lie with the revival of the historic Bobby’s name.

Bournemouth Echo: Bobbys

The Daily Echo recently revealed that the building’s owner, Verve Properties, intends to open Bobby’s this summer and restore the building to its former glory.

There are plans for an art gallery, a beauty floor, grooming salons, a sushi bar, a microbrewery, a spa and a range of retailers, with the first elements ready in July and more following next year.

HOUSE OF FRASER

Bournemouth Echo:

House of Fraser – or Dingles, as its local presence was known for many years – is the one Bournemouth department store currently open.

It is also the oldest of the town’s big stores, having started in the Arcade as Bright’s of Bournemouth in 1871 and expanded into neighbouring buildings.

But the company has been through as many troubles as its competitors and the Old Christchurch Road store was on a list of planned closures in 2018. The business was later bought by Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley and became part of the Frasers Group.

Read more:

Last month, it emerged that the Bournemouth store – a grade two listed building – was on the market for offers of at least £4.95million.

It is being marketed as a “prime town centre redevelopment/investment opportunity”.

The estate agents’ brochure revealed that House of Fraser is there on a flexible arrangement and paying five per cent of its turnover as rent. Turnover-based rents have been one of the ways bricks-and-mortars have attempted to gain some breathing space in recent years.

The agents say the building could be used for residential or student accommodation, a hotel or leisure, as well as retail.

**

One thing the Covid crisis has made clear is that town centres will have to change.

Commentators suggest there will need to be more homes in town centres and that big retail sites will have to accommodate a variety of uses.

Bournemouth – where the possibility of sustaining three department stores has been in doubt for years – may be ahead of many other towns in finding those new uses.