Supermarket chain Lidl is looking for four new sites in North Lanarkshire in a bid to expand its presence across the country during the next two years.
The company is interested in hearing from landowners about suitable development locations in Cumbernauld – where it is seeking two potential sites in both the north and south of the town – as well as Wishaw and Moodiesburn.
All four are among 58 locations across Scotland to be included in the store’s annual “wish list” of its preferred areas for possible new stores.
Lidl want to hear about “prominent” town-centre, edge-of-centre or retail park sites for either standalone stores or mixed retail developments, with “easy access, strong pedestrian or traffic flow” and space for more than 100 car parking bays.
Cumbernauld and Moodiesburn would be new additions for the company; while Wishaw already has a Lidl branch at Roberts Street and is one of three Scottish entries to be listed as “relocation”.
Supermarket officials note that: “The site requirements brochure indicates areas of interest to Lidl which are desirable for new stores, not new store plans or openings.
“It represents a long list of potential sites and does not guarantee that a new store will be brought to [each] area; further, it is not a reflection of plans for current stores in these areas.”
Lidl is already constructing two new supermarkets in North Lanarkshire, at Airdrie and Bellshill, with work on both sites starting this summer and a total of 80 new jobs being created at the two stores.
Scottish regional director Ross Millar said: “We want to continue to reach more shoppers and our site requirements brochure is a testament of that.
“There are towns that will be new for Lidl and in some places, the potential to even double our sites; we look forward to opening new stores in the coming months and years and becoming part of local communities.”
Lidl add: “Any new store will feature solar panels on the exterior to provide renewable energy for the site, electric vehicle charging points [and] will also become part of redistribution programme Feed It Back, which sees surplus food donated to those in communities who need it most, via food banks or partner charities.”
The company has a regional distribution centre at Eurocentral which is its largest such facility in Britain, serving its 100 Scottish stores; while the company aims to have 1000 stores across Britain by the end of 2023 in a £1.3 billion expansion programme.
