Redevelopment of Percy Thrower's Gardening Centre will see the addition of a Waitrose store on site.
The Garden & Leisure Group said yesterday that it was in the final stages of discussion with Waitrose over the redevelopment of its Percy Thrower's centre in Oteley Road, Shrewsbury.

If planning proposals are successful, the entire garden centre will be overhauled and a Waitrose food store will share the site and parking facilities.

Garden and Leisure marketing director John Moseley said: "The 6,000sq m development is still subject to planning from Shropshire County Council but we are hopeful that it will be favourably received.

"Essentially there will be two distinct stores sharing the same location - with shared car parking. The demographics of the two businesses match very closely, and there is a genuine synergy between the two trading concepts, which will provide an absolutely unique shopping destination."

Garden & Leisure took over Percy Thrower's in 2000. The centre currently stands at 4,500sq m and has a number of fairly mature buildings, having opened more than 40 years ago.

Waitrose said of plans to redevelop the site: "The proposal will include a new state-of-the-art Percy Thrower's garden centre and a new neighbourhood centre anchored by a Waitrose food store designed to complement our new convenience store, which opened last week... We are continuing to develop plans so we can bring them forward and give the local community the opportunity to provide their feedback."