House of Fraser to open new store in Belfast

The 200,000 sq ft, five-floor store, which anchors the central Victoria Square development, has been designed by London consultancy Kinnersley Kent.

The design consultancy also worked on the retailer's last store opening at the Dundrum Town Centre scheme on the edge of Dublin, as well as the revamp of House of Fraser’s Oxford Street flagship that was completed in 2007.

The lower-ground floor will be home to beauty, fashion accessories and a “world of shoes” concept for women, as well as a champagne bar. On the upper ground floor, there will be menswear, a multimedia department and luggage section, while the first floor will hold womenswear, lingerie and eveningwear.

Above this, the second floor will be devoted to homewares and a children's department and on the third floor, at the top of the store, there will be a restaurant and bar.

The shop front has been designed to include a curved facade, intended to act as a backdrop against Victoria Square's central dome space.

The store’s restaurant will open during non-trading hours and the fashion floors will feature home-grown Irish brands, as well as some labels that are new to Belfast, according to House of Fraser.

Kinnersley Kent has been working on the project since 2003 and has also created the blueprint for the 140,000 sq ft High Wycombe store, which forms the anchor for the town's new shopping centre and is scheduled to open a week after the Belfast store.