Tyne & Wear shop seeking new owner for the first time in 20 years
A Londis branded convenience store in the village of Biddick, in Washington, Tyne and Wear, has been brought to the market through specialist business adviser, Christie & Co.
The retail store is located in a residential area with other complementary businesses in the vicinity, which help to boost footfall and trade, and features a newly surfaced car park at the front, providing further convenience for customers. Offering a range of products including newspapers and magazines, grocery, and off license, the store is relied on in the local community.
Formerly two separate retail units, these have been combined to form one spacious and very well presented convenience store which can easily be run by an owner operator, thereby saving staffing costs and increasing profitability. There is scope for a new owner to modernise the store and introduce new, popular product lines, such as food to go and hot drinks, which would further increase trade.
Current owner, Mrs Haire, who runs the business with her son, is looking to sell so that she can retire, whilst her son wishes to concentrate on other business interests. She comments, “This is a great business serving a friendly local community. It has served my family very well over two decades and we now hope it can do the same for new owners.”
Andrew Birnie, Director at Christie & Co is handling the sale and comments, “Convenience stores in Washington always attract strong interest from buyers. They have their own ‘village’ location within the larger area of Washington and, as such, many see limited competition compared with retail businesses other towns, shopping parades and high streets. In addition, as this one combines both the newsagents and off licence for the village, it enjoys a monopoly trading position that most would envy.
“As it is being sold by the family that run it, staff transfer is at a minimum and so would be great for a simple handover to the next operator. As it is in a nice area and is a well established business, we believe the store would appeal to many different potential buyers looking to work for themselves.”
Christie & Co is seeking an asking price of £150,000 for the leasehold interest of the Londis Biddick.
