There’s been a high street business refurbishment boom here in Wimbledon recently in our shops, gyms and destinations. The investment into improving, renovating and refurbishing is creating a new energy in town and a more attractive place to visit. Wimbledon has always offered a dynamic mix of smaller and medium sized shops and services, and as footfall has increased to higher than pre-pandemic levels, our businesses are reacting to attract even more people into their stores. There’s a bit of a competitive effect too, as a sense of pride develops amongst our businesses.
So what kind of investment is being made? If you take just the health and wellbeing sector, on top of the extraordinary amount of gyms opening independent Fitness Space had a mega revamp and the Virgin Health Club has a massive £3m upgrade. Pure Gym, The Gym Group and Anytime Fitness have all moved in recently, fitting out tired units and establishing strong identities in town, all bringing regular footfall into the town centre.
In the F&B sector, nationally recognised brands including Wagamama, Wahaca and Nando’s have invested in recent makeovers of their successful Wimbledon stores, to make their spaces even more interesting, welcoming and popular. One of Wimbledon’s most iconic buildings, the Prince of Wales pub, has just been lovingly conserved and upgraded by the owners Greene King, creating not only a distinct and attractive marker in the town centre, but a great place to eat and drink.
You can also visit the newly upgraded and independent Storm salon on Gladstone Road – now with beauty treatments, and for a healthy living option, don’t miss the newly refurbished Holland & Barrett in Wimbledon Quarter, all part of a range of upgrades happening alongside new openings. You can make sure you’re appreciating all these sites with the best possible vision too, by visiting the just-refurbished Specsavers!
We asked Love Wimbledon CEO, Craig Hurring what’s caused this Wimbledon refurb explosion?
Wimbledon has always been a place for first and launches, we have the UK’s first Uniqlo and Sticks’n’Sushi here, and it’s a place where established companies want to stay. If you take Body Shop, we are one of the few destinations to keep this iconic brand, when so many closed around the country. It’s a resilient town centre, which has welcomed some new thinking from companies such as Romulus and Infinite Partners, the former investing millions of pounds in reimagining a nineties covered shopping centre, the latter leading on a new artistic and entrepreneurial hotel and meeting spaces for all. All this activity and enhancement within our town centre has created a drive to invest and refurb, there’s a strong sense of civic pride, together with a bit of ‘they are doing it next door, we need to do it as well.”
You can see our full business listings here – pay them a visit and enjoy all our transformations!
