British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s has inaugurated the first of 14 retail spaces recently purchased for transformation into its supermarkets. The new store is located in Felixstowe.

The company's Next Level strategy aims to expand its food offerings to a broader customer base across various regions, leveraging its established reputation for quality, value and service.

The newly acquired stores are situated in key areas to enhance the retailer's presence throughout England, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

The opening of the Felixstowe supermarket marks Sainsbury’s debut in the East Suffolk region.

Situated at 189 Hamilton Road within a revamped section of the Great Eastern Square shopping complex, the 19,000ft² establishment offers an expanded retail area.

The transition involved the transfer of staff from the previous establishment and the recruitment of 42 new employees.

Sainsbury’s chief property and procurement officer and smart charge managing director Patrick Dunne stated: “It was also an exciting moment for our business as today’s launch marks the first of many brilliant new supermarkets we plan to open over the next two years, following our strategic decision to acquire 14 new sites for conversion into Sainsbury’s last year. Our bold plan is driven by our belief in the strength of Sainsbury’s offer and our commitment to bringing more of our delicious, high-quality and great value food within easy reach of more customers.

“We’ve worked diligently to transform the Felixstowe site into a new Sainsbury’s store in just a few months and we will continue to convert many more of the sites we’ve acquired for launch over the next two years, as well as opening more new stores from our existing pipeline of purpose-built supermarkets.”  

Sainsbury’s growth blueprint includes adding over 400,000ft² of retail space through new supermarkets over two years.

Coupled with plans to inaugurate an additional 25 convenience stores annually during this period, the initiatives are projected to position a Sainsbury’s store within a ten-minute drive for 700,000 additional customers.

The 14 acquired locations include former Homebase outlets and two stores purchased from East of England Co-op.

Following Felixstowe's launch, the retailer will open second store later in 2025.

Sainsbury’s reported a significant rise in its after-tax profit to £242m ($320m) in the fiscal year 2024/25 - a 76.6% increase from the previous year’s £137m.