US homewares giant Williams-Sonoma is to open its first store in the UK on London’s Tottenham Court Road, Retail Week has learned.
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The $4bn (£2.6bn) homewares group is thought to be on the verge of completing a deal to open on the London shopping street, famous for furniture brands, under its West Elm fascia, in the shop currently occupied by Harveys.
The opening is expected to shake up the UK homewares market, which has seen much consolidation in the downturn. West Elm is Williams-Sonoma’s more trendy brand, and has been likened to Habitat in terms of product and price point.
Habitat collapsed into administration in 2011 before a slimmed down version was bought by Home Retail. One of Habitat’s three remaining stores is located on Tottenham Court Road.
Williams-Sonoma operates 560 stores in the US and 21 stores in Canada, including 253 for its Williams-Sonoma brand, 192 for Pottery Barn, and 48 West Elm stores.
The group also operates franchised stores in the Middle East, including Bahrain, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
It is thought property agent Harper Dennis Hobbs is acting for Williams-Somona in the UK. Harper Dennis Hobbs declined to comment.
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