What: Next has opened its first department store-style location with an upsized in Watford.

Why is it important: It comes at the same time as M&S is moving towards a department store model, selling more third-party brands, after UK retail lost Debenhams as a physical stores business due to the impact of the pandemic.

Next in Watford brings together its regular clothing and homewares offers, all well as including the beauty ranges that it has been diving deeper into in recent years and adding a Victoria’s Secret to the mix as part of its UK licence deal for the giant US lingerie brand.

The new ‘department store’ covers almost 95,000 sq ft across three floors with an extra 4,500 sq ft Victoria's Secret branch that has its own entrance as well as being accessible from the Next branch.

Next opens new department store