Majestic Wine recently kicked off a £4 million investment into its store portfolio, as it unveiled its newest shop in Trowbridge, Wiltshire.
Its investment over 2026/27 includes the launch of at least four new stores, as well as a comprehensive programme of improvements to its existing UK shops.
Majestic Retail managing director Elizabeth Newman shares more on the investment and its implications for its physical stores.
New store and local fulfilment hub
The new Trowbridge store is based in “a prime location” on Wicker Hill, close to the banks of the River Biss, The Shires Shopping Centre and a host of bars, restaurants and coffee shops, according to the retailer.
It sells Majestic’s full range of over 1,000 wines, including a dedicated area for 72 fine wines, as well as its growing proposition of beers, spirits, low and no alcohol alternatives, soft drinks, snacks and gifts.
“We know there are thousands of discerning wine drinkers in the local community, many of whom have shopped with us for a long time in Bath, Devizes, Chippenham or online,” she says.
“This store makes it even more convenient for them to shop with us.
“We also have a fast-growing number of on-trade partners across Wiltshire, so the Trowbridge store gives us an even more local fulfilment hub to help us serve existing partners and attract even more new gastropubs, bars and restaurants operating in the town.”
Inside the store, which measures over 4,000 sq ft, staff host free wine tastings seven days a week, while customers are able to try a selection of wines before purchasing them at the shop’s in-store tasting counter.
Additionally, shoppers are able to use Majestic’s range of complementary services, including its free glass hire, bespoke wedding tastings, and its “no quibble guarantee,” which allows them to return any wines they don’t like in exchange for a bottle of equivalent value.
An experiential approach
Looking at the wine specialist’s wider store investment, Newman explains that Majestic has invested £4 million into bricks-and-mortar since “stores are at the heart of everything” it does.
“They are our biggest customer acquisition tool in retail, they act as micro-fulfilment hubs for our Majestic Commercial on-trade business delivering to local bars and restaurants, and they are where we bring the Majestic experience to life through our in-store tasting counters and expert advice,” she says.
“Wine has always been a discovery-led category, our customers don’t just want to walk in and pick up a bottle off the shelf, they want to taste new wines before they buy and speak to our store sommeliers for some inspiration on what new products they might like to buy next based on their tastes and budget.
“That’s a unique and differentiated proposition that we know there is a huge appetite for, so investing in new stores and modernising our existing estate will help us deliver the best possible experience to even more customers.”
Explaining how Majestic will continue to do so, Newman says: “This has always been a central part of what we do, going right back to when we were founded nearly 50 years ago.
“We talk a lot internally about stores being at the heart of everything in our strategic plan, and they genuinely are. It’s deep rooted in our Majestic DNA and always will be.
“We know that human connection is incredibly important in wine, our customers want to hear from our colleagues about what’s new and exciting, and they buy into wines that have interesting stories and heritage behind them.”
She adds: “All of our colleagues are educated through the wine and spirit education trust and we fund and coach our people to more than 400 new qualifications every single year.
“So they are continuously broadening their knowledge, which they can then share with our customers on the shopfloor.”
An estate of profitable stores
All of Majestic’s existing stores are profitable, making the brand “incredibly selective” about where it invests in new shops, according to Newman.
“Each new store brings thousands of new customers into the Majestic family, so fundamentally it’s about growing that shopper base and our top line,” she says.
She explains that the key improvements it is making consist of “modernising our tasting counters and installing new shelving to expand our ranges across all categories.”
“That’s everything from fine wines to snacks. Tasting counters are the focal point of our store experience and so we want to make those spaces as accessible and visually appealing as possible to encourage customers to discover new wines and learn about them from our colleagues.
“And the addition of more shelving not only reduces some of the operational challenges for colleagues stacking boxes and crates, but makes our stores easier for our customers to navigate and shop.”
She adds: “It also allows us to merchandise our fine wine offering in a much more striking way, with dedicated shelving units that elevate that proposition and really catch the customer’s eye when they walk into a store.”
As it stands, Majestic has four new stores in the pipeline.
Although Newman does not specify the exact locations of these shops, she reveals that it is “focusing on locations like Trowbridge” where it knows there are “populations of discerning wine lovers, who either travel to Majestic stores in neighbouring towns, shop predominantly with us online, or buy most of their wine from other retailers operating locally”.
“Where we know there are communities like that crying out for a Majestic store, we will try to bring the full Majestic experience to their doorsteps,” she assures.
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