HOLIDAY Hypermarkets is set to announce the location of five new sites as part of partner First Choice’s strategy to develop the equivalent of 720 shops within 17 months.
Ben Reid, chief executive of West Midlands Co-op which is developing the sites in conjunction with First Choice, said he expected to reveal the locations within the next few weeks.
“We had hoped to announce the new sites by now but the lawyers seem to have been doing a lot of partying over the last few weeks,” he added.
Two new sites – in Salford and Southampton – are opening by the end of this month, bringing the total number of locations to six.
Once the new sites have been finalised, it will take between 10 and 12 weeks to build them.
Holiday Hypermarkets has been given a brief to develop 20 new sites by the end of the year after First Choice acquired a 25% stake in the venture for ú15m.
First Choice said one hypermarket generates 15 times the turnover of a traditional high-street shop.
First Choice chairman Ian Clubb said the company was ahead of its target to open 100 greenfield sites by the end of the year after First Choice acquired 32-shop Intatravel for ú8m .
“There are an awful lot of people approaching us to sell their business,” said Clubb.
First Choice retail managing director Gerry Reilly is overseeing the acquisitions and development of greenfield sites.
Meanwhile, Northeast-based Hays Travel has signed up nine new agents, including one Advantage and one ARTACagent, to join its management services scheme which already has 15 members. The move follows First Choice taking a 19.5% stake in the 20-strong agent.
Hays Travel managing director John Hays said a further 40 agents had requested draftcontracts.