The Fragrance Shop opens 150th store

THE Fragrance Shop, the specialist perfume retailer, has opened its 150th store and plans to open another four by the end of the year.
 
The milestone outlet is at the Carillon Court shopping centre in Loughborough. It is The Fragrance Shop’s latest opening of 2013 as it gears up for the crucial Christmas trading period and looks to cement its place as one of the fastest-growing perfume retailers in the UK.
 
Earlier this year, The Fragrance Shop unveiled record results, including a sales increase of 15.1% to £81m in the year to the end of March.
 
Sanjay Vadera, chief executive of Trafford-Park-based company said: “The opening of our 150th store is an important milestone for us and underlines our strategy and commitment to bricks-and-mortar retailing underpinned by a wider multi-channel offering.
 
“Like the other shops in our portfolio, the Loughborough store is in a prime location. It will provide customers with a compelling in-store experience, which is crucial in the multi-channel era.”
 
Nigel Lawmon, managing director, added: “The retail sector remains a challenging place to be but we continue to outperform the market and opening new stores in core locations is central to our strategy.
 
“We believe we are well-placed as we head towards the Christmas trading period. We have a pipeline of further store openings before the end of the year and continue to actively seek prime retail space in suitable locations.”

To engage with shoppers The Fragrance Shop offers a Click and Collect service, where customers buy online and pick up in store.  Its Try it First initiative allows customers the chance to have their fragrance delivered to their home along with a free tester. Click and Collect now accounts for 17% of total sales.

The company was founded in 1995 with a single store. It now employs over 800 people.