Asda mulls George clothing sale, could add beauty salons

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Mar 8, 2021

Asda’s new owners are planning a radical transformation of the supermarket chain that could see the introduction of services such as nail bars and beauty salons, the addition of further third-party concessions, as well as the possible sell-off of its George clothing operations.

That latter move could come after the deal to buy Asda was financed by taking on a lot of new debt. Divesting George but continuing to retail it via a licence deal could help to pay down that debt.

George is the second-largest clothing retailer in the UK by volume but billionaire brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa reportedly don’t see it as their key area of expertise.

The Issas are also said to be developing plans to reduce grocery floor space by around a quarter, in order to add such beauty services, along with more food service such as cafes and takeaways, The Times reported.

Asda has the kind of flexibility not enjoyed by many retailers in that it owns around three-quarters of its properties, and it wants to make the most of those giant spaces. 

That includes attracting other retailers to spare areas and using the stores much more as distribution centres for online grocery shopping. It has already introduced external names into several stores, including Accessorize and B&Q and has extended partnerships with Claire’s Accessories and Decathlon.