Mander Centre

The centre was refurbished in 1987, when it was described as "a covered pedestrianised shopping complex at the centre of the principal shopping area of Wolverhampton" with more than 150 shops.

In 2003 the centre embarked on a further multi-million pound refurbishment programme. It was an opportunity to complete the enclosure of the centre to make it fully climate controlled. The marble floor in the entire centre was replaced along with the relocation of the escalators and stairways. The biggest change was the creation of the large New Look store which took over numerous stores.

In 2010 the Mander Centre was acquired by Delancey Estates and Royal Bank of Scotland from Manders Holdings Plc and its successor companies. In the spring of 2014 this led to heated national controversy when they proceeded to remove a landmark bronze sculpture, Rock Form (Porthcurno),[2] by Barbara Hepworth, specially commissioned for the site and donated by the Mander family and shareholders in 1968. Its sudden disappearance led to questions in Parliament in September 2014. Paul Uppal, Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton South West said: "When the Rock Form was donated by the Mander family, it was done so in the belief it would be enjoyed and cherished by the people of Wolverhampton for generations… It belongs to, and should be enjoyed by, the City of Wolverhampton."

In 2011 Delancey announced that they would invest £25 million in the Mander Centre, completing a major refurbishment and reconfiguration of the centre and creating a new 90,000 sq ft department store. On 4 December it was announced that the Mander Centre had been acquired by Benson Elliot Capital Management for £59 million, and that the £35 million investment was still going ahead. It was also announced that the new store that was to be created during the refurbishment would be occupied by Debenhams and would be completed by 2017.[3]

On 18 November 2016 H&M was the first major store to open as part of the shopping centre's multimillion-pound redevelopment. It is 31,000 square feet in area, is the first store in the West Midlands to include a homeware department, and is located in the store formerly occupied by Woolworths.[4][5]

Having previously moved to a temporary store Superdrug opened a new store on 2 May. It occupies the former WH Smith store, and marks the second new store opening since the beginning of the centre's refurbishment.

It was announced in September 2017 that Richard Scharenguivel had been appointed as Centre Manager, having previously been Deputy General Manager at the Bull Ring, Birmingham.[6]

On 12 October 2017, Debenhams was officially opened, the second new store to be opened by Debenhams this year. It was also only the second in the UK to feature a new deli restaurant called Loaf & Bloom.[7][8]

In July 2018, M J Mapp were appointed by Benson Elliot to take on the daily management of the Mander Centre.[9]

In April 2019, Debenhams announced, among other store closures, that less than two years after it opened, the Mander Centre store, which formed the centerpiece of the centre's refurbishment, would close in January 2020.[10]

In July 2019 it was announced that the Starbucks coffee shop would close in August 2019, with no explanations from either Mander Centre or Starbucks.[11]

In October 2019, it was announced that House of Fraser (Beatties) would vacate its current building in Wolverhampton city Centre and take up residence in the former Debenhams store when the store closed in January 2020. The new Frasers concept store will introduce a number of brands to the Mander Centre, with Sports Direct to take up the lower ground floor, Frasers and USC to take up the ground floor and Flannels to take up the top floor. Frasers were expected to occupy the building as soon as Debenhams vacate in January 2020.[12]

On 11 January 2020, the 93,000 sq ft Debenhams store, which had opened to much fanfare in 2017, closed in the Mander Centre. This is the first wave of store closures in an attempt to save the ailing department store. It is expected that Frasers (House of Fraser) will occupy the building later in 2020, opening a brand new flagship store introducing a number of brands to the Mander Centre.[13]

As of December 2020 stores include Bonmarché, Boots, B&M, Claire's Accessories, Costa Coffee, Evans Cycles, Flannels, Game, H&M, HMV, Krispy Kreme, Matalan, New Look, Sports Direct, Superdrug, T.H. Baker, The Entertainer, The Perfume Shop, Wilko and various smaller independent stores such as Nicklemen and The Shop in the Square.

Stores formerly found in the centre include:

• Adams Kids - closed 2008
• British Home Stores - closed in August 2016 due to company going into administration; now occupied by B&M and Wilko[16]
• Debenhams - closed 11 January 2020, soon to be occupied by Frasers, Sports Direct, USC and Flannels
• Starbucks - closed in August 2019
• TJ Hughes - closed in 2011 due to company going into administration; building was demolished and rebuilt for Debenhams
• WH Smith - closed in 2016 due to Centre refurbishment, now occupied by Superdrug
• Woolworths - closed 2008 due to the company going into administration, now occupied by H&M