Virgin Media to expand retail business

Virgin Media today said it plans to triple the number of its UK retail stores in a year.

The broadband, television and telephony firm said recent openings have brought its total own-brand outlets to 27 and it is expected to reach around 70 in a year.

Virgin Media said the move was part of a three-year expansion plan, which would also include the creation of new "retail lite" sites to showcase all aspects of the firm's offering.

These "stores without walls" will sell the same range of broadband, television and mobile phone packages as Virgin Media's ordinary shops, but will be designed as permanent installations for customers to walk through.

They will be set up in prominent shopping centre locations including Meadowhall in Sheffield, the Victoria Centre in Nottingham and the Ropewalk Shopping Centre in Nuneaton.

Neil Berkett, Virgin Media's chief executive officer, said: "By increasing our high street presence, we'll be able to drive further growth whilst communicating the benefits of Virgin Media's products in a way that makes sense for consumers.

"In a year when as many as one in every 10 high street shops are expected to stand empty, Virgin Media is exploring new retail opportunities that showcase the possibilities of the digital home in some of the UK's major shopping destinations."

Two new own-brand stores are to be added in London in the coming months and the firm said it has already opened new stores in central Birmingham, Plymouth, Bromley, Leeds and Leicester this year.

Earlier this month Virgin Media revealed it added 7,100 new customers in the first three months of the year.

The figure, which compared with net additions of 4,900 a year ago, was better than market expectations.

At the time Virgin said that a record 57% of its customers now took all three of its services - broadband, television and telephony - up from 51.3% in 2008.