The Range (retailer) explained

The Range Home & Gardens PLC
Industry:Retail
Foundation:[1]
Location:Plymouth, United Kingdom
Key People:Chris Dawson (Chairman)
Products:Home, garden and leisure products
Owner:Norton Group Holdings
Num Employees:11,200

The Range Home & Gardens PLC is a multi-channel retailer selling products in the home, garden, and leisure categories, with over 210 stores in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is owned by Norton Group Holdings, who also own Wilko.

History

In 1980, Chris Dawson started business as an open-air market trader in Plymouth, South West England.

His first physical retail store opened in 1989 at Sugar Mill Business Park on Billacombe Road, Plymouth, under the name "C.D.S. Superstores". This trading style continues to be displayed on external signs exclusively at this debut store only,[2] as a nod to the heritage of the business.

The business was subsequently rebranded "The Range" in the early 1990s after further store openings. "The Range" is the trading name of The Range Home & Gardens PLC.[3]

Key people

Chris Dawson, the founder of the business, was chief executive officer between 1989 and 2017.

Jersey based Sarah Dawson wholly owns the parent company's shares with her husband Chris Dawson listed as a person with significant control.[4]

Chris Dawson was ranked fifth in Management Today's seventh annual survey of Britain's Top 100 Entrepreneurs.

Store growth

The Range has expanded rapidly. In 2009, The Range was ranked 121st on The Sunday Times, PricewaterhouseCoopers Top Track, and 250 League Table of the United Kingdom's fastest growing companies.

The business regularly announces new store openings in large tranches, for example in November 2013, it was announced that The Range planned to open 40 stores in the period of 2013 to 2016.[5] New store openings such as the Swansea store[6] regularly gain local press attention.

Many of the stores in Ireland are repurposed stores/retail warehouses that have been left by other brands including Woolworths, Tesco,[7] Homebase and Atlantic Homecare[8]

During 2016 and 2017, The Range opened stores in both Northern Ireland[9] and the Republic of Ireland for the first time. Chris Dawson, the chain's billionaire owner has previously indicated he has European expansion plans, including 1,000 stores across Europe.[10] The retailer currently operates a total of 211 stores, including a brand new concept store in Derriford, Plymouth.

The Range have also expanded e-commerce operations significantly in recent years. The business was recognised in 2017 as a leading multi-channel retailer in the Internet Retailing UK Top 250[11] and the EU Top 350[12] indices.

Store formats & locations

The vast majority of stores are situated in out-of-town retail park locations, with some exceptions such as the four Greater London stores at Surrey Quays, Enfield, Romford and Watford. The Range also occupies some shopping centre locations such as the Redditch store.[13] Various design iterations of the store branding and format have been used as the brand has evolved. Stores are geographically dispersed across all regions of the United Kingdom & the Republic of Ireland.

Many stores also include a "Dee Dee's", an own-brand coffee shop concept operated by Compass Group[14] and found only within The Range stores. Newer, larger stores offer an Iceland food department (paid for at main tills),[15] and the cafes in stores with Iceland are branded 'Iceland Cafe'.[16] Some stores also host concessions such as rug cleaner hire or key cutting services.

Distribution centres

The Range operates over 2,000,000 sq ft of distribution space, mostly from their facilities at Avonmouth, Bristol and Thorne, Doncaster.

The Avonmouth distribution centre has an area of over 1,250,000 sq ft[17] and is the largest single footprint warehouse in the United Kingdom.[18] [19]

In Spring 2024, The Range will open a brand new distribution centre in Stowmarket, Suffolk, just off the A14 trunk road, with 1,170,000 sq ft of space for goods.https://www.logisticsmanager.com/construction-complete-at-the-range-warehouse-in-suffolk/ The road is directly on the route from the Port of Felixstowe to the Midlands and beyond.

The Thorne distribution centre has an area of over 750,000 sq ft.[20]

The Range also has a distribution centre located in Normanton, Wakefield, and a Multichannel Fulfilment Centre in Rugby, Warwickshire.

The distribution centres are currently operated by DHL. Distribution is run by Gregory Distribution Group who supply drivers to use The Range’s fleet of vehicles on local work, and they also use their own vehicles for longer distance deliveries.

Head office

The Range Head Office used to be in the Estover area of Plymouth, but in 2019 it was relocated to a new building named ‘Elsie Margaret House’. It is in the Derriford area of Plymouth next door to the flagship store. It employs over 300 people.[21]

The new head office was part of a major development by London-based property developer Petros and was set to include residential, retail, hospitality and office space. Dawson has indicated a long-held ambition to commit The Range to a long-term future and its head office jobs to Plymouth, the city where he has lived most of his life.[22]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: From market trader to millionaire - the rise and rise of Chris Dawson and The Range. Plymouth Herald. Telford. William. 19 February 2015. 31 March 2015.
  2. Web site: The Range - Our Story. www.therange.co.uk. 6 September 2017.
  3. News: Jordan . Dearbail . Wilko: Lisa Wilkinson 'devastated' over the failure of firm . BBC News . 28 November 2023 . 28 November 2023.
  4. Web site: NORTON GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED . 12 Oct 2022. Companies House.
  5. News: Did you know... that The Range plans to open 45 stores in the next three years. 29 November 2013. 26 November 2014. Retail Week.
  6. Web site: We take a sneak peek inside Swansea's newest The Range store ahead of its grand opening. 8 December 2016. Swansea Evening Post. 21 December 2016.
  7. Web site: Popular UK retailer, The Range, to open its doors in Maynooth next month. www.leinsterleader.ie.
  8. Web site: The Discounters are here to stay | The Hardware Journal. Aoife. Kinsella. 15 May 2019 .
  9. Web site: Retail chain The Range to create 80 jobs with new Connswater store. McKeown. Gareth. The Irish News. 14 August 2017. 4 September 2017.
  10. News: Range boss Chris Dawson climbs rich list with £1.65bn fortune. 25 April 2015. westernmorningnews. 5 August 2015.
  11. News: InternetRetailing UK Top500 2017 - InternetRetailing. InternetRetailing. 4 September 2017.
  12. News: Leading European multichannel retailers named in 2017 IREU Top500 report - InternetRetailing. 31 July 2017. InternetRetailing. 4 September 2017.
  13. Web site: UPDATE: Hundreds turn up to opening of The Range Superstore. Redditch Advertiser. 14 July 2017 . 5 September 2017.
  14. Web site: Compass Group wins £60m contract with The Range. Manzoori-Stamford . Janie . 19 Sep 2014 . www.thecaterer.com. 5 September 2017.
  15. News: Iceland develops supply chain network to support store expansion strategy . 17 October 2022 . SHD Logistics . 18 June 2019 . en.
  16. News: Shaw . Neil . Iceland to open first cafe where you can eat then buy frozen meals . 17 October 2022 . WalesOnline . 12 September 2019 . en.
  17. News: The Range and DHL open distribution centre in Bristol. ITV News. 5 September 2017.
  18. News: The Range distribution centre will be the largest ever built in the South West - The Business Exchange - Bath and Somerset. 21 January 2016. The Business Exchange - Bath and Somerset. 7 September 2017.
  19. News: INCREDIBLE NEW AERIAL PICTURES REVEAL THE ENORMITY OF THE RANGE'S NEW AVONMOUTH WAREHOUSE . Central Park Bristol . January 4, 2017.
  20. Web site: TritaxTritax Big Box REIT plc - Acquisition of The Range, Nimbus Park, Thorne, Doncaster for £48.5 million - Tritax. www.tritax.co.uk. 5 September 2017.
  21. News: Chris Dawson marks 30 years of The Range by opening another superstore in his home city. 4 January 2019. Plymouth News Room. 4 January 2019.
  22. News: The Range HQ to anchor new district centre for Derriford - Plymouth News Room. 24 April 2014. Plymouth News Room. 6 September 2017.