A fierce supermarket rivalry has erupted in Bath over Lidl’s proposed new store on a field off London Road on the city’s eastern edge. The budget retailer withdrew controversial plans last July but has since submitted a revised application aimed at addressing previous concerns, particularly regarding traffic impact.
Lidl has designed the latest proposal to minimize disruption on London Road, a key issue cited in the earlier plans. Despite these efforts, the application has sparked hundreds of responses on Bath & North East Somerset Council’s planning portal, with objections outnumbering support.
Major competitors Morrisons, Waitrose, and the Co-op have formally objected to the new Lidl store. Morrisons warns the development could threaten the viability of their city centre outlet. Lidl estimates the new store might reduce Morrisons’ city centre turnover by nearly 10%, but Morrisons insists the actual impact could be closer to 25%. They highlight that such a decline might jeopardize their store’s future and negatively affect Bath’s city centre retail health.
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Morrisons’ objection also underscores potential adverse effects on local convenience stores in surrounding areas like Bathwick Street, Combe Down, Twerton, and especially Larkhall, which heavily relies on its local stores.
Waitrose criticizes the retail impact assessment submitted with the application, questioning its assumptions and the sufficiency of evidence proving no significant adverse impact on Bath city centre. They emphasize their store’s vital role in sustaining the city centre’s vitality and footfall, framing the potential impact as a key planning consideration.
The Co-op, while acknowledging competition is not a direct planning issue, argues the proposed Lidl would be overly large—four times bigger than the nearest Co-op—and poorly situated, requiring customers to drive rather than walk, raising sustainability concerns.
Lidl’s regional head of property, Glen Stidever, defends the proposal, highlighting extensive consultations and revisions addressing design, traffic management, and landscaping. He stresses the new store aims to meet rising demand for affordable, quality groceries while integrating well into the local area. Lidl expects the store to create up to 40 jobs and predicts that its closer location will cut customer travel by 29%, reducing carbon emissions by 82 tonnes annually.
The fate of Lidl’s application now rests with Bath and North East Somerset Council, which will make a decision in due course.