Big W (United Kingdom)

Big W

Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Retail
Predecessor	Woolco (related predecessor large-format stores)
Founded	1998
Defunct	2004
Fate	Discontinued; stores sold or converted to Woolworths Out-of-Town Stores
Headquarters	United Kingdom
Area served	United Kingdom
Parent	Kingfisher Group (later Woolworths Group)

Big W (later known as Woolworths Big W) was a UK-based retail chain operated by the Kingfisher Group (which later became Woolworths Group) from 1998 until 2004. These outlets were large-scale, out-of-town megastores that combined merchandise from Kingfisher's key retail brands at the time, including Comet, B&Q, Superdrug, and Woolworths.

After Kingfisher underwent a corporate split and faced declining sales alongside unsatisfactory financial performance, the Big W format was discontinued in 2004. Approximately 25% of the locations were sold off, while the remainder were downsized and operated under the name Woolworths Out-of-Town Stores. These continued trading until Woolworths entered administration and ultimately closed in 2008.

Previous experience

Prior to launching Big W, Woolworths had already ventured into large out-of-town retail formats. Under The F.W. Woolworth Company, the inaugural British Woolco store opened in Oadby, Leicestershire, in 1967. Spanning , it offered a variety of goods including groceries, clothing, and household items all within a single site. By the 1970s, there were twelve Woolco stores operating across the UK. When The F.W. Woolworth Company spun off its British operations into Woolworth Holdings PLC in 1983, these Woolco outlets were part of the portfolio. Woolworths eventually exited this market segment by selling the stores to supermarket chain Gateway in 1986, which then passed them on to Asda in 1988.

Formation of Big W

In 1980, The F.W. Woolworth Company acquired Southampton-based DIY retailer B&Q, which expanded to a peak of 26 stores. Two years later, in 1982, Woolworth’s UK business underwent a management buyout, initially named Paternoster Stores before becoming Woolworth Holdings PLC. The company continued growing by acquiring electrical retailer Comet in 1984 and beauty retailer Superdrug in 1987. Reflecting its diversified brand portfolio beyond just Woolworths, the group rebranded as Kingfisher Group PLC in 1989.

Kingfisher recorded a £100 million profit in 1997 and successfully revamped Woolworths stores into three categories: "City," "Heartland," and "Local." The group intended to purchase supermarket chain Asda to develop out-of-town megastores combining Kingfisher’s products with Asda’s grocery range; however, Walmart ultimately acquired Asda.

Despite this obstacle, Kingfisher’s CEO Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy introduced the Big W concept in 1998 as a way to unify its various retail brands under one large-format store. Bob Hetherington, originally from Canada and experienced in managing the American Woolco chain, was appointed to oversee Big W operations. His vision was to transform these stores into attractive shopping destinations featuring weekend entertainment.

The first Big W outlet launched in Edinburgh in June 1999—a spacious 100,000 sqft store that drew around 30,000 visitors within its first three days. This location included a Burger King restaurant and a clothing concession operated by Peacocks, alongside its core product offerings.

Prior to this opening, on 30 April 1999, Kingfisher purchased ten of twelve Co-Op Homeworld outlets. Most were converted into B&Q Warehouse stores; however, some were transformed into Big W locations. In August 1999, it was announced that the former Coventry Homeworld site—an 80,000 sqft facility—would become Big W’s second store when it opened in October. Additional Homeworld units in Rotherham and Bristol were planned for conversion into Big W stores by early 2000, with openings scheduled for March.

The chain continued to grow steadily; for example, in July 2000 the Coventry store began trialling packaged food sales through an agreement with the Booker Group. In September of that year, Kingfisher secured a three-year contract with Peacocks to supply clothing across all Big W locations. On 12 October 2000, Kingfisher revealed plans to expand Big W’s grocery selection by the following year and launched its inaugural television advertising campaign titled "Moving Home." Between October and November, four additional stores opened in Stockton, Redruth, Bradford, and Glasgow.

Fate

In 2000, Kingfisher Group PLC revealed its intention to demerge, concentrating solely on the DIY and Electrical sectors. The following year, the General Merchandise division, which included Big W, was separated into an independent public company named Woolworths. Concurrently, Superdrug was divested to the Dutch firm Kruidvat.

This demerger significantly affected Big W, resulting in the loss of most key suppliers and effectively transforming the stores into large Woolworths outlets under the new title Woolworths Big W. Despite these changes, new locations opened under this branding, and some existing sites were rebranded accordingly. By 2003, Woolworths curtailed new store launches as profitability declined sharply.

Following ongoing financial losses, Woolworths declared in 2004 its decision to discontinue the Big W format. The strategy involved selling stores licensed to sell groceries and converting others into smaller Woolworths Out-of-Town Stores. The initial conversions occurred at Hartcliffe and Norwich branches; a planned Big W in Byker was instead launched as a large Woolworths store.

On 9 January 2005, Woolworths disposed of seven grocery-licensed outlets to Tesco and Asda, including a Grimsby store that never commenced trading. The remaining Big W locations were reconfigured into Woolworths Out-of-Town stores, with retail space reduced to an ideal trading area of approximately . Many shared premises with Peacocks stores, while others underwent significant downsizing.

About

Much like Woolco, Big W outlets were situated primarily in retail parks or suburban locations throughout the UK and initially stocked products from Kingfisher’s four principal brands. After rebranding as Woolworths Big W, inventory shifted exclusively to Woolworths merchandise—a practice maintained even after conversion to standard Woolworths stores. Some stores later incorporated Woolworths Clearance Outlets within their facilities.

Stores

Location	Opened	Closed	Notes
Aberdeen	25 July 2003	January 2005	Acquired by Asda in January 2005.
Beckton	2002	2 January 2009	Transformed into retail park units from 2016, hosting Family Bargains, Home Bargains, and a Selco Builders Warehouse.
Bolton	17 August 2001	14 February 2005	Sold to Asda in January 2005; reopened as Asda in May 2005.
Bradford	November 2000	January 2009	Situated at Victoria Centre, Girlington; later replaced by The Range from June 2009.
Byker	Never Opened	Never Opened	Constructed for Big W but launched as Woolworths/Peacocks in 2004; converted to Asda in 2010.
Catcliffe, Rotherham	March 2000	2008/2009	Located within Catcliffe Retail Park; after vacancy, Boundary Mill Stores occupied the site in 2012.
Cheetham Hill	2004/2005	2 January 2009	Converted to Woolworths then subdivided into Matalan (closed in 2019) and B&M Bargains; merged into Evans Cycles in 2021.
Coventry	29 October 1999	5 February 2005	First Big W granted food sales license; sold to Tesco in January 2005 and reopened mid-year as Tesco Extra.
Coatbridge	2002	2005	Sold to Tesco and relaunched as Tesco Extra.
Edinburgh	June 1999	5 January 2009	The inaugural store; featured Peacocks and Burger King outlets. Converted into The Range in 2013.
Filton, Bristol	March 2000	2 January 2009	Downsized during 2005; replaced by Asda (2013) and B & M (2014) after closure.
Glasgow	October/November 2000	2008/2009	Situated at Forge Retail Park; converted to Tesco Extra in 2011, closed April 2022 due to lease issues and poor performance; currently vacant.
Grimsby	Never Opened	Never Opened	Built and staffed but never operated as Big W; opened as Tesco Extra in May 2005 following acquisition.
Hull	2003	2005	Sold to Asda in January 2005.
Hartcliffe, Bristol	circa 2001?	2 January 2009	Downsized in 2005 with Woolworths/Peacocks and Tesco Homeplus; reopened as "What" in 2009 and became The Range in 2011.
Loughborough	2004	2008/2009	Located at The Rushes Shopping Centre; taken over by Tesco in February 2010.
Newark-on-Trent	unknown	2008/2009	Downsized with Woolworths and TK Maxx; later segmented into multiple retail units.
Newport	2002	2008/2009	Located on East Retail Park; downsized with Woolworths and TJ Hughes; Woolworths section became The Range (2011), TJ Hughes space converted into B&M Home Store (2017).
Norwich	2002	2008/2009	Included Peacocks outlet after downsizing; replaced by Matalan following closure.
Redruth/Pool	October/November 2000	4 February 2005	Sold to Tesco in January 2005; reopened as Tesco Extra in July.
Small Heath, Birmingham	2001	2008/2009	Converted into seven smaller retail units post-closure; area renamed St. Andrews Retail Park.
Stockton	13 October 2000	30 December 2008	Featured Peacocks outlet after conversion; redeveloped into Stockton Shopping Park hosting tenants like The Range, B&M Home Store, The Food Warehouse, and Smyths from 2010.
Tamworth	2001	26 April 2008	Downsized with Woolworths alongside Marks & Spencer sharing space; expanded M&S store opened December 2008 after Woolworths closure.

External links

• (archived)