The group's new store in Cavendish Square, Claremont, which opened last Thursday, is the second of the "new look" stores after last year's opening of a new store in Gateway Mall in KwaZulu Natal.

Woolworths group head of real estate development Paul Simpson said it was impossible to put a time frame on the refurbishment programme as stores were evaluated on a project-by-project basis.

The philosophy behind the refurbishment is to create "an exciting shopping experience". Woolworths wants its customers to spend longer in the stores, which is why it has introduced coffee shops in some of its newer and larger stores.

The new Woolworths in Cavendish Square, like some other big modern Woolworths, offers a coffee shop. It also features a children's clothing section with funky furniture and colours intended to attract children, as well as other "sub-brand" sections such as kitchenware and branded men's and ladies' clothing.

Simpson said although stores were organised into sections to help shoppers find their way about, Woolworths was committed to being a one-brand business, not a department store.

The store has an extensive food section, which is a key attraction for shoppers, with the latest SA designed stainless steel cabinets for fresh produce. These have so impressed visiting management of UK retail giant Marks & Spencers that SA is now exporting them.

Simpson said even though it was a smaller store, the group expected it to trade at considerably higher densities than the old store. By the end of its first year it will become the flagship store in Cape Town.

Business Day