A prominent Selly Oak shop that has been sitting empty since Poundland moved last August is to reopen with a new occupant. The Battery Retail Park unit is under transformation, with a Bensons For Beds sign being added to the unit.
New Retailer Joins Busy Shopping Park
The shop sits between Sports Direct and TK Maxx and the new shop will join other retailers including Pets At Home, Currys, Halfords, Hobbycraft, The Food Warehouse and The Gym Group. An exact opening date for Bensons For Beds has not yet been confirmed.
Just around the corner from the new shop is another large empty unit that is currently unoccupied. The former Homebase on Harborne Lane closed last year and is currently boarded over and covered in graffiti.
Wider Neighbourhood Transformation
Change is coming in the neighbourhood more generally. Construction at the site of the former Sainsbury's is well underway opposite the Battery Retail Park, with buildings forming the new Triangle development going up as we speak. The Triangle will be a mixed-use scheme across two blocks with around 835 student accommodation rooms and around 26,000sq ft of commercial space.
According to plans, there will be a gym, on-site cinema and dedicated study spaces for the students while it will also have its own community medical centre and parking spaces. The £90m works should be finished by June 2027.
Distinct Shopping Parks
The Battery Retail Park should not be conflated with the Selly Oak Shopping Park which sits behind it. That is where Poundland moved to when it closed and it is home to the new branch of Sainsbury's as well as shops like M&S Food, Next, Superdrug, The Works and more.
We will bring you more from the neighbourhood as we get it.
