Your Herefordshire revealed the news yesterday that British Land is set to apply for planning permission to change the use of the upper floors of the currently empty Debenhams unit at Old Market Hereford into office space, with local Herefordshire company MandM Direct interested in being the tenants if planning permission is granted.
The move could see up to 200-300 workers working from the new office space, in a move that is hoped to revitalise the area following the closure of Debenhams and the nearby Outfit store.
Your Herefordshire understands that the new tenant, MandM Direct (subject to formalities being signed) wishes to split the current unit into a mixture of retail (ground floor) and office space (first floor).
The 83,000 sq ft unit at the Old Market in Hereford has been empty since Debenhams collapsed into administration last year and combined with the closure of Outfit, the Old Market has lost two of its largest retailers.
MandM Direct are said to be hoping to move into the building once British Land convert the upper floors of the building into offices, with the ground floor remaining as a retail floor, subject to planning permission being granted.
A source told Your Herefordshire that the company could move as many as 250 employees to the new offices.
MandM Direct is currently based at Moreton-on-Lugg and Leominster.
There have been a number of rumours about who could be set to take over Debenhams, with many suggestions last year that a number of local businesses have shown interest in moving into the unit, as well as some national retailers. The Old Market opened in 2014 and was the first major retail development in the city of Hereford for more than 25 years.
