Broadway Shopping Centre, Bexleyheath
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Broadway Shopping Centre (branded as The Mall Bexleyheath from c. 2004 until reverting to its original name in 2009) is the principal covered
shopping centre A shopping center in American English, shopping centre in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, spelling differences), shopping complex, shopping arcade, ...
in the town centre of
Bexleyheath Bexleyheath is a town in southeast London, England, in the London Borough of Bexley. It had a population of approximately 15,600 in 2021 and is southeast of Charing Cross. It is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in London ...
and is the largest single covered shopping facility in the
London Borough of Bexley The London Borough of Bexley () is a London boroughs, London borough in south-east London, forming part of Outer London. It has a population of 248,287. The main settlements are Sidcup, Erith, Bexleyheath, Belvedere, London, Belvedere, Crayford ...
. Whilst some parts of the centre opened in 1981, Woolworths being the first on 23 November,Bexleyheath observer 26 November 1981 https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/540/32477541576_88d1e8c752_b.jpg the centre was opened in its current form by
Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...
, Duke of Edinburgh on the thirteenth of March 1984 and underwent an extensive refurbishment in 2007. It had been due to form part of a wider regeneration of the surrounding area of Bexleyheath over the coming years, which would have seen additional retail amenity, Bexley Council offices, a
library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...
and residential development adjacent to the existing building. However, in 2010, following the sale of the centre, its new owners confirmed the major expansion plan would not be going ahead, though a small extension to the existing site remained a possibility. There are 59
retail shop The retail format (also known as the retail formula) influences the consumer's store choice and addresses the consumer's expectations. At its most basic level, a retail format is a simple marketplace, that is; a location where goods and services ar ...
units considered to be within the Mall building (including several premises where public access is from the Broadway itself) and additional smaller retailers in RMUs (small, freestanding
kiosk Historically, a kiosk () was a small garden pavilion open on some or all sides common in Iran, Persia, the Indian subcontinent, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward. Today, several examples of this type of kiosk still exist ...
-like units). In April 2016, Jones Lang LaSalle concluded the sale of the Bexleyheath complex to NewRiver Retail.


Information and location

The Mall is located in a rectangular building in the centre of
Bexleyheath Bexleyheath is a town in southeast London, England, in the London Borough of Bexley. It had a population of approximately 15,600 in 2021 and is southeast of Charing Cross. It is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in London ...
. The boundaries of the centre are the Broadway to the north, Townley Road to the west, Albion Road to the south and Norwich Place to the east. Norwich Place and the Broadway are now pedestrianised; the Broadway having been
pedestrianised Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town restricted to use by people on foot or ...
in 1993, and Norwich Place - partly closed off in the 1993 changes - was fully paved as part of the Broadway Square changes of 2001. Access to the malls is via pedestrian entrances at three sides of the mall (Broadway, Townley Road and Norwich Place), and vehicle access to the centre (for parking and deliveries) is via ramping at Albion Road. The centre is a four-storey building; public access to the retail stores is on the ground level; the first floor contains primarily 'service' (delivery bays), office space including the centre management suite, and the customer
toilets A toilet is a piece of sanitary hardware that collects human waste (urine and Human feces, feces) and sometimes toilet paper, usually for disposal. Flush toilets use water, while dry toilet, dry or non-flush toilets do not. They can be desi ...
; and the upper floors are
car park A parking lot or car park (British English), also known as a car lot, is a cleared area intended for parking vehicles. The term usually refers to an area dedicated only for parking, with a durable or semi-durable surface. In most jurisdic ...
ing. There are two levels of parking - Upper and Lower - and each is divided into three sectors (East, West and Central), with associated lifts and
stairs Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical direction, vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps wh ...
linking each sector to the mall level.
Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks & Sparks or simply Marks) is a major British multinational retailer based in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, beauty products, home produc ...
,
W H Smith WH Smith plc, trading as WHSmith (also written WH Smith and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son), is a British retailer, with headquarters in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of railway station, airport, port, hospital and motorway service st ...
and BHS have since opening offered some of their retail activity on the first floor, accessed via lifts/stairs/escalators within the relevant store; the 2010 H&M and New Look stores, and the 2011
River Island River Island (stylised as RiverIsland and abbreviated as RI) is a London-based, multi-channel fashion brand, founded in 1948 by Bernard Lewis (entrepreneur), Bernard Lewis. The retailer has a presence in over 125 of worldwide markets, in stores ...
store, introduced retail space on the first floor as part of the remodelling process to develop their retail space. Additionally, some stores have used internal mezzanine ceilings to create a 'false' upper level in their stores, though none are currently open using this format; the former
HMV HMV is an international music and entertainment retailer, founded in 1921. The brand is owned by Hilco Capital and operated by Sunrise Records, except in Japan, where it is owned and operated by Lawson. The inaugural shop was opened on Lo ...
,
Next NeXT, Inc. (later NeXT Computer, Inc. and NeXT Software, Inc.) was an American technology company headquartered in Redwood City, California that specialized in computer workstations for higher education and business markets, and later develope ...
and
Waterstones Waterstones Booksellers Limited, trading as Waterstones (formerly Waterstone's), is a British bookselling, book retailer based in London, England, owned by the American investment group Elliott Investment Management. It operates 311 shops, ma ...
(later
JD Sports JD Sports Fashion plc, commonly known as JD Sports, JD or JD Group is a British multinational sports-fashion retail company based in Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 10 ...
) stores did this, though the stores which replaced them do not - Select, Deichmann and EE having reverted these units to trading on a single retail level. The building encompasses three covered malls of shops which converge on a central square, and also includes a row of shops facing onto the Broadway itself (the shops between
Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks & Sparks or simply Marks) is a major British multinational retailer based in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, beauty products, home produc ...
and Your Move (formerly
Thomson Thomson may refer to: Names * Thomson (surname), a list of people with this name and a description of its origin * Thomson baronets, four baronetcies created for persons with the surname Thomson Businesses and organizations * SGS-Thomson M ...
) (inclusive) are considered part of the Mall, though their postal addresses are given as being on the Broadway). The sloping nature of the land in the centre of Bexleyheath means that the Broadway entrance leads to a mall which is inclined until it meets the central square, and the Townley Road entrance is the only entrance of the three to be connected to the street level by steps/ramping. Stores trading within the centre's buildings include
Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...
,
Card Factory Card Factory plc is a retailer of greeting cards and gifts in the United Kingdom founded in Wakefield by Dean Hoyle and his wife Janet. The first store opened in 1997, and by 2020 the company had over 1,000 stores. The company also operate ...
,
Greggs Greggs plc is a British bakery chain. It specialises in savoury products such as baked goods, sausage rolls, sandwiches and sweet items including doughnuts and vanilla slices. It is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is lis ...
, H&M,
Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks & Sparks or simply Marks) is a major British multinational retailer based in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, beauty products, home produc ...
,
Morleys Stores Morleys Stores is a group of eight department stores in Greater London, a business-to-business furniture supply subsidiary called Morley's of Bicester Ltd and a department store & furniture centre called Camp Hopson of Newbury in Newbury, Berks ...
,
Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is a British supermarket and the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company was the largest UK r ...
(with
Argos Argos most often refers to: * Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece * Argus (Greek myth), several characters in Greek mythology * Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer in the United Kingdom Argos or ARGOS may also refer to: Businesses ...
),
Superdrug Superdrug Stores plc (trading as Superdrug) is a health and beauty retailer in the United Kingdom, and the second largest behind Boots UK. The company is owned by AS Watson (Health & Beauty UK) Limited which is part of the A.S. Watson Group. ...
, and
WHSmith WH Smith plc, trading as WHSmith (also written WH Smith and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son), is a British retailer, with headquarters in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of railway station, airport, port, hospital and motorway service s ...
.


History and design

The Mall opened in its current form in 1984, although outer sections fronting the Broadway opened earlier. Woolworths being the first, opening their new store at 93 - 105 Broadway on Monday 23 November 1981. The centre was built on a site previously largely occupied by Hides department store, the Lord Bexley Arms pub and neighbouring smaller buildings. The design of the new mall was a rectangular building facing onto Broadway, anchored by large stores at either end - Marks & Spencer at the eastern end and British Home Stores at the westernmost end - with accommodation around the centre for further large stores including a supermarket (Presto, later Safeway) and WH Smith and Woolworths all three of which opened both onto Broadway itself and into the new centre, and a large Boots store inside the mall, alongside smaller units providing capacity for around fifty further retail stores. The interior
colour scheme In color theory, a color scheme is a combination of 2 or more colors used in aesthetic or practical design. Aesthetic color schemes are used to create style and appeal. Colors that create a harmonious feeling when viewed together are often us ...
of the mall, until the 2007 revamp, was in hues of
brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...
,
gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
and
cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...
, with
marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...
d pillars, brown tiling in selected areas, cream and brown marble effect floor tiles and
copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...
-coloured ceiling tiles and strips. The 2007 revamp altered this, most significantly in replacing the entire ceiling with a new
white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
and
grey Grey (more frequent in British English) or gray (more frequent in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning that it has no chroma. It is the color of a cloud-covered s ...
one. The exterior of the building is principally
brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...
, with dark brown
roof tiles Roof tiles are overlapping tiles designed mainly to keep out precipitation such as rain or snow, and are traditionally made from locally available materials such as clay or slate. Later tiles have been made from materials such as concrete, glass ...
; a glazed white frontage was added to the main Broadway entrance area and the Townley Road entrance area as part of the 2007 alterations. In addition to the main retail units, small kiosks have featured within the centre to offer additional retail space within the malls; currently there are a number of kiosks in the 'RMU' format also used in a number of
the Mall Fund The Mall Fund owns and operates shopping centres in England using the trading name "The Mall Company". The shopping centres are usually branded and marketed as "The Mall". The Mall Fund owned up to 10% of the covered retail space in the United ...
's other centres. The inaugural winner of the Mall Fund's 'Make Your Mark' competition for new retailers was 'Daisy's Dog Deli', a pet food RMU based at The Mall, Bexleyheath. This firm has since relocated to trade from a kiosk at the
Bluewater Bluewater(s) or Blue Water(s) may refer to: Maritime * Blue water, the global deep oceans *Blue Water 24, an American sailboat design * Blue-water navy, a navy that can operate in deep waters of open oceans * , a Panamanian tanker in service 1952- ...
regional shopping mall. In the early years of the centre's existence, the site was known as the Broadway Shopping Centre; its owners included
Norwich Union Norwich Union was the name of insurance company Aviva's British arm before June 2009. It was originally established in 1797. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. On 29 April 2008, Aviva a ...
. In the early 21st century the building was acquired by
The Mall Fund The Mall Fund owns and operates shopping centres in England using the trading name "The Mall Company". The shopping centres are usually branded and marketed as "The Mall". The Mall Fund owned up to 10% of the covered retail space in the United ...
, becoming one of their network of centres under the generic "The Mall" branding. The Mall Fund subsequently purchased the neighbouring Broadway Square, and ran it alongside The Mall. In 2009, The Mall Fund's parent company Capital & Regional agreed a deal to sell the centre to
Jones Lang LaSalle Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated (JLL) is a global real estate services company, founded in the United Kingdom with offices in 80 countries. The company also provides investment management services worldwide, including services to institutional an ...
. As a result of its departure from the network, use of The Mall corporate material declined, though some elements (such as signage and branding) remained under The Mall identity, being replaced over a period of time. Other centres which have been sold off by The Mall Fund (such as
The Ashley Centre The Ashley Centre (from 2005-2009 as The Mall Ashley) is a shopping centre, in Epsom, Surrey. The Ashley Centre was opened on 24 October 1984 by Queen Elizabeth II as The Ashley Centre, a development combined of shops, a multi-storey car park, ...
) have reverted to their former names following their sale. Some marketing materials for the centre, as of Spring 2010, began to appear bearing the names 'Broadway' or 'Broadway Shopping Centre' in plain text. In September 2010, new signage bearing the name "Broadway Shopping Centre Bexleyheath", with the centre's new red-and-white logo, began replacing the Mall-branded elements. The full rebranding of the centre was timed to coincide with the opening of major new H&M and New Look stores on the former Woolworths site. Following the sale of the centre, it was removed from The Mall's corporate website; initially, it did not have a dedicated website of its own as a replacement. However, JLL subsequently established one at broadwayshoppingcentre.com - with signs promoting this URL appearing in the centre from September 2010.


Developments and redevelopments


Broadway Square

In 2001, a new shopping development adjacent to the Mall was opened, having been under development for some time. Broadway Square uses a '
strip mall A strip mall, strip center, strip plaza or simply plaza is a type of shopping mall, shopping center common in North America and Australia where the stores are arranged in a row, with a footpath in front. Strip malls are typically developed as a ...
' format to offer a pub and six large retail units, with an associated two-level (basement and ground) car park. Broadway Square was initially independent of the neighbouring covered centre, until it was subsequently acquired by
The Mall Fund The Mall Fund owns and operates shopping centres in England using the trading name "The Mall Company". The shopping centres are usually branded and marketed as "The Mall". The Mall Fund owned up to 10% of the covered retail space in the United ...
and run in conjunction with the main Mall. Retailers currently trading from Broadway Square (as at June 2012) are
TK Maxx TK Maxx is a discount clothing and homewares retailer, founded in 1994. It is currently based in Watford, England. It is owned by American retailer TJ Maxx, who could not trade under the initials "TJ" in the United Kingdom due to the British d ...
,
JD Sports JD Sports Fashion plc, commonly known as JD Sports, JD or JD Group is a British multinational sports-fashion retail company based in Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 10 ...
,
Poundland Poundland Limited is a British variety store chain founded by Dave Dodd and Steven Smith in 1990, originally selling all of its items at the single price of £1. The retailer grew from a single location in Burton upon Trent, opening its hund ...
,
Poundstretcher Poundstretcher Limited is a British variety store chain, founded in 1981 by Paul Appell and Stephen Fearnley. The retailer is currently based in Kirby Muxloe, Leicestershire, and since April 2024 has been a subsidiary of the Fortress Investme ...
,
Wilko Wilko.com Limited (trading as Wilko) is a British Variety store, variety retailer. It was founded as Wilkinson by James Kemsey Wilkinson and Mary Cooper in 1930 as a hardware retailer, opening its first store in Leicester. In 1972, Tony Wil ...
and
Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is a British supermarket and the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company was the largest UK r ...
, along with The Furze Wren (a
J D Wetherspoon J D Wetherspoon (branded variously as Wetherspoon or Wetherspoons, and colloquially known as Spoons) is a British pub company operating in the United Kingdom, Isle of Man and Ireland. The company was founded in 1979 by Tim Martin and is based ...
pub). It was not initially clear whether the sale of the Mall to JLL also included Broadway Square, as the two buildings retained their separate identities under Mall Fund ownership, but new centre maps installed by JLL in September 2010 included the Square stores as well as the main centre, suggesting the whole site had indeed been sold.


2007 revamp

In late 2006 work began on a major refurbishment of the Mall. The lavatory facilities were revamped, and as part of this the men's toilet was
relocated Relocated may refer to: * ''Relocated'' (album), 2006 album by Camouflage *'' Red vs. Blue: Relocated'', 2009 television miniseries *"The Relocated", Inuit of the High Arctic relocation The High Arctic relocation took place during the Cold War ...
, with the previous men's room becoming a baby changing and feeding area. The mall level was also revamped, with the copper
ceiling A ceiling is an overhead interior roof that covers the upper limits of a room. It is not generally considered a structural element, but a finished surface concealing the underside of the roof structure or the floor of a story above. Ceilings can ...
strips and tiles, which had been in place since the centre's opening, removed, and replaced by a new white and grey ceiling. Several new
skylight A skylight (sometimes called a rooflight) is a light-permitting structure or window, usually made of transparent or translucent glass, that forms all or part of the roof space of a building for daylighting and ventilation purposes. History O ...
s were also cut into the roof of the centre to allow more
natural light Natural Light, formerly Anheuser-Busch Natural Light, nicknamed Natty, is an American reduced-calorie light lager brewed by Anheuser-Busch. Its ingredients are listed as water, barley malt, cereal grains, yeast, and hops. One serving contains ...
in - due to the design of the building, with the mall level at the bottom of a four-storey development, access to natural light had been limited prior to the changes. There were also new glazed entrances developed at two of the three pedestrian entrances. The revamp also allowed space for Mall TV displays (monitors broadcasting a loop of information and promotional material) and advertising hoardings. Some of The Mall branded elements introduced in the revamp remained in the centre briefly following the sale to JLL but have now largely been replaced.


Previous developments of major stores

Due to the location and design of the building, historically bounded by roadways on all four sides (albeit with two of these later pedestrianised), it has not been possible to extend or materially alter the Mall. However, there have been a small number of changes to the
configuration Configuration or configurations may refer to: Computing * Computer configuration or system configuration * Configuration file, a software file used to configure the initial settings for a computer program * Configurator, also known as choice board ...
of units in the centre, which have made a limited number of new units available. Two of these changes involved the division of the centre's original Woolworths store. When the centre opened in 1984, a large Woolworths was located at the eastern side of the centre close to
Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks & Sparks or simply Marks) is a major British multinational retailer based in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, beauty products, home produc ...
. In 1990 this was cut in half, creating three new units - one which was initially occupied by
Miss Selfridge Miss Selfridge is a British fashion brand and former high street store chain which began as the young fashion section of Selfridges department store in London in 1966. It was part of the Arcadia Group, controlled by Sir Philip Green, which we ...
, then by
HMV HMV is an international music and entertainment retailer, founded in 1921. The brand is owned by Hilco Capital and operated by Sunrise Records, except in Japan, where it is owned and operated by Lawson. The inaugural shop was opened on Lo ...
from 1994 to 2013, and then by fashion retailer Select from 2014; one for
Superdrug Superdrug Stores plc (trading as Superdrug) is a health and beauty retailer in the United Kingdom, and the second largest behind Boots UK. The company is owned by AS Watson (Health & Beauty UK) Limited which is part of the A.S. Watson Group. ...
, which was at the time under common ownership with Woolworths; and one for
Argos Argos most often refers to: * Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece * Argus (Greek myth), several characters in Greek mythology * Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer in the United Kingdom Argos or ARGOS may also refer to: Businesses ...
facing onto Broadway. The remainder continued as a smaller Woolworths. In 2000, Woolworths moved to the former
Safeway Safeway, Inc. is an American supermarket chain. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, delicatessen, floral and pharmacy, as well as Starbucks coffee shops, and veh ...
unit on the western side of the centre (near to
W H Smith WH Smith plc, trading as WHSmith (also written WH Smith and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son), is a British retailer, with headquarters in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of railway station, airport, port, hospital and motorway service st ...
), where they would remain until the UK Woolworths chain collapsed in 2008: this move saw the vacated smaller Woolworths divided again; this allowed Superdrug and Argos to extend to their current sizes, and also allowed the development of three new shop units, taken up by
GAME A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art ...
, Phones4U and Sussex Stationers. Former office space above Woolworths was let to
Reed Reed or Reeds may refer to: Science, technology, biology, and medicine * Reed bird (disambiguation) * Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times * Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales * Re ...
, with public access to this space created by converting a former Woolworths fire exit. Following the move of Reed out of the centre and the collapse of Phones4U, these areas were pulled together, with the removal of the staircase at the former Reed entrance, in 2015 to form a single store for Footasylum (now
Greggs Greggs plc is a British bakery chain. It specialises in savoury products such as baked goods, sausage rolls, sandwiches and sweet items including doughnuts and vanilla slices. It is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is lis ...
. Following the closure of Woolworths at the end of 2008, its later (ex-Safeway) premises were extensively remodelled and divided into two new retail units. Posters were subsequently applied to the hoardings which confirmed New Look would be taking up a portion of the redeveloped space, relocating from their smaller existing store in the centre; subsequently, a strap appeared on another section of the hoarding confirming an H&M store would be occupying that section of the space from September: this would be H&M's first presence in Bexleyheath. The New Look store opened in late August 2010, followed by the H&M in early September. The relocation of New Look in turn allowed their former premises to be relet to
The Entertainer ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
. The latterday New Look store closed in April 2025; it has yet to be replaced. The only other major store to have changed its configuration since the mall opened was
Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...
, which expanded to its current size in 2001 by taking over a vacant single store (formerly occupied by Instep Sports) neighbouring their original unit. Deichmann opened in a double-fronted store by joining the former Next premises within the mall to the neighbouring former Sussex Stationers store (which had prior to 2000 been part of Woolworths).
Morleys Stores Morleys Stores is a group of eight department stores in Greater London, a business-to-business furniture supply subsidiary called Morley's of Bicester Ltd and a department store & furniture centre called Camp Hopson of Newbury in Newbury, Berks ...
opened a 50,000sq ft
department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...
in the centre in spring 2017, taking the space vacated by the collapse of
British Home Stores British Home Stores, commonly abbreviated to BHS and latterly legally styled BHS Ltd, is an online store and formerly a British department store chain, primarily selling clothing and household items. In its later years, the company began to exp ...
. In 2018 construction work began to install a gym above Morley's, this is operated by
The Gym Group The Gym Group is a chain of 24/7 no contract Health club, fitness clubs in the United Kingdom. The company is headquartered Addiscombe Road in Croydon, London, England. History The company was founded by a squash player, John Treharne, in H ...
and opened in winter 2018-19. Metro Bank applied to Bexley Council for permission to convert units at the Broadway entrance of the mall to create a new bank branch, to open in 2016; to enable this development to go ahead, in late 2015 the stores then trading in the affected units -
Carphone Warehouse Carphone Warehouse is a mobile phone retailer based in London, United Kingdom. In August 2014 the company became a subsidiary of Currys plc (previously named "Dixons Carphone"), which was formed by the merger of its former parent Carphone Wareh ...
,
Thomas Cook Thomas Cook (22 November 1808 – 18 July 1892) was the founder of the travel agency Thomas Cook & Son. He was born into a poor family in Derbyshire and left school at the age of ten to start work as a gardener's boy. He served an appren ...
and Sblended Milkshakes - were relocated to alternative spaces within the building, with Sblended moving to an in-mall kiosk and the others taking then-vacant units. (Thomas Cook has since become
Hays Travel Hays Travel Limited is an independent travel agent chain headquartered in Sunderland, England. , the company has the largest number of retail travel shops in the United Kingdom, at 494. Nearly 90% of the company's bookings are made using trave ...
along with the rest of the chain's branches following the Thomas Cook group's collapse,, Carphone Warehouse closed all its standalone shops in 2020 and Sblended subsequently also withdrew from the centre, its kiosk space as of 2025 occupied by VIP Barbers. The former Carphone Warehouse store was initially taken up by local business The Movie Shack, which subsequently relocated into the larger former Clarks premises and in May 2025 moved again to premises at Mayplace Road West, outside the centre's boundaries, after their lease was not renewed.. The former Carphone Warehouse/Movie Shack site has since been utilised to relocate jewellery store Warren James inside from its previous Broadway-facing unit.


Forthcoming and proposed developments

The Mall Company backed a scheme as part of a proposed redevelopment of Bexleyheath town centre. The scheme would have seen Bexley
Magistrates' Court A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several Jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings. Courts * Magistrates' court (England and Wales) ...
, which currently neighbours the Mall on its south-eastern side, moved to the current Central Library site, and the Broadway Square car park replaced by a new parking facility on part of the current Civic Offices site. The existing magistrates' court, Broadway Square car park and the remainder of the Civic Offices site would then have been redeveloped with two levels of retail stores (linked into the existing Mall at ground level), with new council offices, a new library and a series of residential blocks located above this. This development was approved by Bexley Council in 2009 and was expected to be developed between 2010 and 2012. The plans were submitted to the council by Capital & Regional (as The Mall Fund) prior to the sale of The Mall to JLL; it was not immediately clear what effect the sale would have on the redevelopment plans, or if JLL would take over the project in its existing form. In 2010 it was confirmed that the large-scale redevelopment proposed by C&R would not be going ahead: the library and magistrates' court would remain in their existing locations, with the council selling the civic offices site to a large food store (as had been proposed by construction firm John Laing in the rival bid for the original development plan). JLL may redevelop and extend their mall site in a smaller way, most likely by extending the building onto the Broadway Square car park which neighbours the existing building. Bexley Council subsequently came to an agreement with
Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...
, which had earlier bought the former Woolwich Building Society offices on Erith Road and had planned a supermarket for the site; under this deal, the Civic Offices would transfer their operations to the former Woolwich site, with the current Civic Offices to be replaced with a Tesco store. The relocation of Civic Offices functions to the former WBS building and the demolition of the prior offices went ahead as planned, but Tesco subsequently included the Bexleyheath site among a list of over 40 new stores which would now not be going ahead; the former Civic Offices site was later sold off to
Frasers Group Frasers Group plc (formerly known as Sports Direct International plc) is a British retail, sport and intellectual property group, named after its ownership of the department store chain House of Fraser. The company is best known for trading pr ...
and used for a predominantly residential development constructed by
Bellway Bellway plc is a residential property developer and home construction, housebuilder based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History The company was found ...
, under the banner of Eastside Quarter. As part of Eastside Quarter, Frasers opened a large store featuring its Sports Direct,
USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...
and
Game A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art ...
brands in late 2022, leading to the closure of the existing Game store in the Broadway Centre building (in part of the original Woolworths space facing Broadway) - this has since been taken over by the Bakers+Baristas coffee shop.


Former retailers

Retailers which have formerly traded at the Broadway Shopping Centre but no longer do so include Dixons,
Topshop TOPSHOP (originally Top Shop) is a British online fast-fashion retailer, which specialises in women's clothing, shoes and accessories. It is majority owned by Danish company, Bestseller. In 2024, ASOS sold 75% of Topshop and Topman to Bests ...
and
Topman Topman is a British online-only men's fashion retail brand operated by ASOS. Along with its women's clothing counterpart Topshop and the rest of Arcadia Group, Topman went into administration in late 2020. All high street stores subsequently c ...
,
Miss Selfridge Miss Selfridge is a British fashion brand and former high street store chain which began as the young fashion section of Selfridges department store in London in 1966. It was part of the Arcadia Group, controlled by Sir Philip Green, which we ...
, Woolworths,
Safeway Safeway, Inc. is an American supermarket chain. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, delicatessen, floral and pharmacy, as well as Starbucks coffee shops, and veh ...
, Rosebys,
Radio Rentals Radio Rentals was founded in 1930Radio Rentals Staff Handbook by Percy Perring-Thoms in Brighton, Sussex, UK, to rent out radio sets, with a turnover in the first year of £780 (). It later offered televisions and videorecorders for rent. In ...
,
Our Price OurPrice.com Retail Limited (trading as Our Price) is a British online music and entertainment retailer, and a former music and entertainment retail chain. The original retail chain traded in the United Kingdom and Ireland from 1971 to 2004. It ...
,
Dolcis Dolcis Shoes is a shoewear retailer in the United Kingdom that operate online and through retailers. Previously, they owned over 65 standalone shops in the UK and over 150 concessions. Bought by Harvey Jacobson, of the Jacobson Group in 2012, th ...
,
JJB Sports JJB Sports plc was a British sports retailer. On 24 September 2012, shares in JJB Sports were suspended, and the firm called in administrators. On 1 October 2012, it was announced that Sports Direct had purchased part of the business, includ ...
,
Waterstone's Waterstones Booksellers Limited, trading as Waterstones (formerly Waterstone's), is a British bookselling, book retailer based in London, England, owned by the American investment group Elliott Investment Management. It operates 311 shops, ma ...
, The Link,
Rumbelows Rumbelows was an electrical and electronics retailer in the United Kingdom that once rivalled Currys, Dixons and Comet. History The company was established in 1949 by Sydney Rumbelow when he opened his first shop in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Th ...
,
Principles A principle may relate to a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of beliefs or behavior or a chain of reasoning. They provide a guide for behavior or evaluation. A principle can make values explicit, so t ...
, Bay Trading Company,
Next NeXT, Inc. (later NeXT Computer, Inc. and NeXT Software, Inc.) was an American technology company headquartered in Redwood City, California that specialized in computer workstations for higher education and business markets, and later develope ...
,
Birthdays A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage. Many religion ...
/Pure Party, Burton/
Dorothy Perkins Dorothy Perkins is a British online women's fashion retailer operated by Debenhams Group in the United Kingdom. Formerly a store chain, it sold both its own range of clothes and branded fashion goods until February 2021, when it became part o ...
, and
Monsoon Accessorize Monsoon Accessorize is a British private limited company. It operates two international retail clothing chains – Monsoon and Accessorize.JD Sports JD Sports Fashion plc, commonly known as JD Sports, JD or JD Group is a British multinational sports-fashion retail company based in Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 10 ...
traded inside the mall for a time (in the site which is now occupied by EE) after their merger with First Sport, which previously occupied the unit, but subsequently closed this small store to focus on their larger and more recent Broadway Square site.
Mothercare Mothercare plc is a global brand for products for parents and young children. The company's shares are listed on AIM in London. Mothercare was founded in the United Kingdom in 1961, and specialized in products for expectant mothers and in ge ...
and
Early Learning Centre The Early Learning Centre (ELC) is a British retailer that sells toys aimed at younger children. It is part of The Entertainer (through its parent company TEAL Group Holdings). It was a subsidiary of Mothercare until 2019. History The orig ...
were located in separate stores inside the shopping centre for a number of years, but relocated in September 2010 to a former
Aldi Aldi (German pronunciation: ), stylised as ALDI, is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 12,000 stores in 18 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and ...
store on Market Place, outside the centre's boundaries. (This store has since closed, and as of 2020 all UK Mothercare stores have ceased operations.) The Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice (formerly Cottage Hospice) charity operated a retail store at various store locations within the mall building from 2009, generally taking short-term lets of then-vacant units and relocating as and when required to release stores for new regular tenants. The hospice's final store location within the building during this run closed in June 2011 and was not replaced; the hospice's other charity shops elsewhere continued to trade as normal. A new Hospice charity shop opened (in the former Hype store) in November 2011, moving to the former Pure Party premises in 2012, and this store closed in early 2013. After more than a decade away, a new Community Hospice shop opened - facing Broadway adjacent to WH Smith - in October 2024.
Peacocks Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred to ...
traded from Broadway Square from the unit's opening in 2001 until the firm's collapse in 2012; it was not one of the stores rescued by
Edinburgh Woollen Mill Purepay Retail Limited, trading as The Edinburgh Woollen Mill, is a British clothing retailer founded in 1946 by Drew Stevenson. It is headquartered in Carlisle, England. In November 2002, Philip Day led a management buy-out of the retailer. Th ...
. In its later years Peacocks had operated a Bonmarche concession on its upper level; this too has closed. In May 2012, Poundworld took over the Peacocks premises, installing its own sister firm DiscountUK in the former Bonmarche space. (This store closed in summer 2018 along with all other Poundworld stores, and has more recently been occupied by
OneBelow OneBeyond Retail Limited (formerly known as OneBelow Retail Limited) is a British variety store launched by Christopher Edwards and Chris Edwards Sr. Christopher Edwards is managing director while father Chris Edwards Sr is chairman. History ...
.) In spring 2015, Peacocks included the former (pre-2011) River Island premises within the main centre on a list of new and forthcoming stores posted to its website; when opened, the new Peacocks in fact combined the ex-River Island site with the neighbouring former Harris's. This newer Peacocks had closed by 2021, following another collapse and partial rescue of the Peacocks chain. The store was later reoccupied by Choice Outlet. Local ladieswear boutique Honeybee closed in 2012 having been located in the same position in the centre for over 25 years. Its place was taken by Gosh relocating from its previous site. As of 2018 this store is occupied by
Smiggle Smiggle is an Australian-based retail store chain that sells stationery and related accessories. It was founded in Melbourne by Stephen Meurs and Peter Pausewang in 2003 and acquired by the Just Group in July 2007. As of February 2016, the chain ...
, who carried out the most thorough refurbishment of the space undertaken since the Honeybee era. Footwear retailer Harris's took up the former ELC store inside the mall in December 2010, then moved to the former
La Senza La Senza Corporation is a Canadian fashion retailer that sells women's lingerie and intimate apparel. The La Senza brand is currently owned by Regent which operates and owns La Senza stores in Canada and the United States and uses a franchise mo ...
store site on the Broadway, outside the centre's boundaries, in 2013. The former ELC/Harris's store is now absorbed as part of the 2015-21 Peacocks/current Choice store.
HMV HMV is an international music and entertainment retailer, founded in 1921. The brand is owned by Hilco Capital and operated by Sunrise Records, except in Japan, where it is owned and operated by Lawson. The inaugural shop was opened on Lo ...
traded from a unit in the mall - now occupied by Yours Clothing - between November 1994 and March 2013, when it closed along with over sixty other branches of the chain. In August 2022 it was announced that the firm, having since come under the ownership of
Doug Putman Douglas Robert Putman (born 25 March 1984) is a billionaire Canadian businessman, predominately trading in the retail sector across North America and Europe. Through his firm, Putman Investments, he owns numerous retail chains involving music, en ...
's
Sunrise Records 2428391 Ontario Inc. (trading as Sunrise Records) is a Canadian record store chain based in Hamilton, Ontario. Currently owned by Doug Putman (whose family also runs Everest Toys), it currently operates in nine Canadian provinces. Originally op ...
, would reopen a Bexleyheath store after over nine years' absence.. Similarly, Clarks traded from the mall for a number of years (latterly as a Clarks Outlet discount store) before being included on a list of loss-making stores which would be closed if landlords refused to move to letting the unit on a zero-rent basis;Drapers Online, 2019-11-19
/ref>; the firm has subsequently reopened a new, smaller full-line store in a different part of the mall building.


References


External links

* {{Shopping centres in London Shopping malls established in 1984 Shopping centres in the London Borough of Bexley Bexleyheath 1984 establishments in England