Friars Square

Friars Square is a shopping centre located in the town centre of Aylesbury. The landlord is the Rockspring, and managed by Montagu Evans.[2]

Friars Square
Entrance to the bus station
LocationAylesbury, England
Coordinates51.8150°N 0.8133°W / 51.8150; -0.8133
Opening date1967 (original Friars Square)
1993 (new Friars Square)
ManagementAndy Margieson
OwnerRockspring
ArchitectStanley Bragg Architects
No. of stores and services49[1]
No. of anchor tenants1 (House of Fraser)
Total retail floor area283,000 square feet (26,300 m2)
Websitefriarssquareshopping.com

The shopping centre is a mixed-use development, incorporating elements of a previous shopping centre development of the same name. Friars Square includes over 60 shops and restaurants, offices, 400-space multi-storey car park and bus station. The Cloisters indoor market was closed in 2012.[3] The centre is anchored by House of Fraser.

History

The original Friars Square (or Friar's Square) was created in the 1960s as the Aylesbury Town Centre Redevelopment. It transformed the south-west part of the town centre including the Market Square and Silver Street areas. Opened in 1967, it included a number of shops in an open-air pedestrian only area, and included a new location for the town's market.[4] The Cadena cafe, which later became a Wimpy, was housed in a modern architectural pavilion over the open market.[5]

The current shopping centre was formally opened in 1993 at a cost of GB£70m, following the closure and extension of the previous town centre development of the same name. The redevelopment was designed by Stanley Bragg Architects.[6] The large Woolworth building was integrated into the development, to house the new anchor store (now House of Fraser) and the library.

In 2007 the centre was sold by F&C Property Asset Management to Multiplex.[7] In 2011, ownership passed to Royal Bank of Scotland's West Register asset division, as the newly merged Brookfield Multiplex subsequently moved out of the UK retail market following its acquisition of Multiplex.[8] RBS had previously provided the debt for Multiplex to buy Friars Square for GB£89.5 million.

In 2012, the vacant office building was proposed to be converted into 50 apartments.[9]

In January 2013, a branch of clothing chain H&M opened in Friars Square,[10] on the site of the old HMV store which was closed on 11 February 2012.[11]

In September 2013, a branch of rival clothing chain Topshop opened in Friars Square, in a newly constructed part in the middle of the main shopping mall.[12]

In October 2017, a branch of Smiggle specialising in stationery products opened.[13]

In June 2018 the Friars Square security team won Security Team of the Year title at the annual SCEPTRE Awards at the Dorchester in London.[14]

References
  1. "Shops". Friars Square Shopping Centre.
  2. "Friars Square gets fresh boss for New Year plans". Bucks Herald. 17 December 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  3. "Traders 'devastated' at Friars Square shopping centre plans". BBC News. 6 January 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  4. "Transformation of the town centre". Buckinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  5. "Enjoying a Wimpy at Friars' Square". Bucks Herald. 11 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  6. "Friars Square". Stanley Bragg Architects. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  7. "New Friars Square owner". Bucks Herald. 4 December 2007. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  8. "Management shift for shopping centre". The Scotsman. 11 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  9. "New Friars Square Shopping Centre apartment complex given approval". Bucks Herald. 29 November 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  10. "It's all the fashion! Shoppers flock to H&M opening in Aylesbury". www.bucksherald.co.uk.
  11. "HMV closure in Aylesbury signals end of an era for the humble compact disc". www.bucksherald.co.uk.
  12. "Aylesbury Topshop will now open in September". www.bucksherald.co.uk.
  13. "Stationery chain Smiggle opens in Aylesbury". Mix 96. October 6, 2017.
  14. "Friars Square has the best shopping centre security team in the country". www.bucksherald.co.uk.
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