Primark planned for £70m Stafford complex
Debenhams has pulled out of the £70 million Riverside complex, with Primark lined up as a replacement the flagship store, the Express & Star can reveal.
Developers LXB announced the change in its end-of-year accounts.
It also showed that Just for Pets and B&M had been signed up for the adjacent new Morrisons site at Kingsmead.
Debenhams confirmed to the Express & Star that it has pulled out of the scheme because of new 'timeframes' but said the firm hopes to have a store in the town in the future.
The two schemes are set to create 650 jobs with a string of new shops including Marks & Spencer, H&M, Arcadia, River Island, and a multi-screen cinema at Riverside.
The old Bridge Street multi-storey car park has been demolished, with work on a new one due to start at the end of this month.
Largest
Stafford Borough Council chief executive Ian Thompson said: "For some time now, people have been asking me whether we could attract a Primark to Stafford so this latest announcement will be very good news to all those ears.
"And this news will also create a fantastic retail diversity for the public in the new Riverside developments with Marks & Spencer and Primark in the two largest units on the site.
"It is good news that Debenhams want to come to Stafford and this, along with the fact we have attracted such a huge brand in Primark, is testament to the popularity of Stafford as a resurgent retail destination. And We will be working with Debenhams to finds the right opportunity for them to locate in our county town." Accounts filed by LXB stated that Riverside is now 80 per cent full with tenants while the Kingsmead development is full.
A statement said: "The Group had previously announced the pre-letting of a 56,000 sq ft unit at Riverside Retail Park to Debenhams. This has recently been replaced by a pre-let of the same unit to Primark on terms which are in substance identical to the arrangements with Debenhams."
A Debenhams spokesperson said: "The new timeframes at Riverside were not in line with our development pipeline. We are still committed to gaining representation in Stafford when the right opportunity arises."
A Primark spokesperson confirmed the chain had signed up to Riverside.
