Waitrose: UK supermarket opening first full store in 7 years at historic Bristol site creating 150 jobs - news

• Waitrose will open its first full-size supermarket in seven years in 2027
• The 30,000 sq ft store is planned for Brabazon, a new neighbourhood in North Bristol
• The site is on the former Filton Airfield, where every UK Concorde was built
• Around 150 jobs will be created as part of the multi-million-pound development
• It’s part of a £1bn investment plan to expand and modernise Waitrose stores across the UK

A major UK supermarket is set to open its first full-size store in seven years — and it’s landing in a location steeped in British engineering history.

Waitrose has struck a multi-million-pound deal to open a new 30,000 sq ft store in Brabazon, a brand-new neighbourhood rising on the former Filton Airfield in North Bristol — the very site where every Concorde in the UK was built.

The retailer’s new store, slated to open in 2027, will be developed in partnership with YTL Developments and is expected to create around 150 jobs.

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Set on the ground floor of a seven-storey office building, the new branch will feature Waitrose’s full food range, fresh food counters, online grocery shopping, and an on-demand delivery service.

Shoppers will also benefit from a nearby multi-storey car park with space for over 1,500 vehicles.

It marks Waitrose’s first full-line supermarket launch since before the Covid-17 pandemic and signals a major shift in strategy.

Until now, the brand’s growth has focused on smaller convenience formats and franchised locations — including recent openings at Welcome Break sites in Spaldwick and Rotherham, and a new convenience store in Southwick, West Sussex.

Two more Welcome Break stores, in Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire, are due to open later this summer, and another convenience store is coming to The Arches in central Bristol.

The new Brabazon branch is part of a wider £1 billion investment drive by the John Lewis Partnership to build new stores and upgrade 150 existing ones over the next three years.

James Bailey, Waitrose managing director, said: “We are moving up a gear in store investment as we open in new locations and modernise our existing estate to bring the quality, service and value that customers love about Waitrose closer to more people.

“Brabazon is one of the most exciting new city districts in the UK, driving the growth of one of the UK’s most vibrant and successful regional economies.”

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