Victoria Square Woking Limited, a joint venture between Moyallen Group and Woking Borough Council, has announced the significant advancement of Victoria Place, the £700m regeneration scheme in Woking town centre, with a range of new milestones reached across the development. 

Marks and Spencer has taken access of its 50,000 sq ft new regional flagship store. Led by contractor ISG, works are underway on the fit-out by the popular British retailer, with the store due to open on the 10^th November 2021. The store will offer a comprehensive range of clothing, homewares, and gifts, alongside an 8,000 sq ft food hall stocked housing fresh produce and a café.  

Also progressing in its preparations to launch is Hilton Woking, with recruitment underway to fill over 160 jobs generated by the new landmark hotel at Victoria Place. The positions created span from sales and marketing roles to culinary and event specialists.  Ranked the top company in the ‘super large’ category of Great Places to Work UK in April 2021, and third in the 2021 UK Best Workplaces for Women, Hilton Woking is set to drive a considerable employment boost to the town centre. 

In addition, Native Group is continuing to drive momentum ahead of the August 2021 launch of its new residential concept The Marches, which comprises 429 furnished rental apartments in two towers of 30 and 34 storeys. The Native team is finalising works and appointing key on-site positions to manage the contemporary living community at Victoria Place, which will also incorporate co-working spaces and residents’ lounges.  

Councillor Ayesha Azad, Leader of Woking Borough Council, commented:  “As we move closer towards the phased completion of this transformative development, we are delighted to see the various cornerstones of Victoria Place coming to life.  With Marks & Spencer, Hilton Woking, and Native Group reaching new milestones in their preparations and recruitment plans, we are beginning to see the real and positive impact of this scheme on Woking town centre.” 

Nicolaas Houwert, General Manager of Hilton Woking, added: “We are proud of the recognition we have received in recent months, which is testament to the focus Hilton has on creating a great place to work for all Team Members. Not only are we excited to work alongside other like-minded organisations to contribute to Woking Borough Council’s regeneration scheme, but we are also looking forward to fostering and growing a new team at Hilton Woking.”

Sir Robert McAlpine is delivering the Victoria Place scheme which is anchored by 125,000 sq ft of retail space, and will also house a medical centre, two public plazas, and spacious new parking facilities for the community. 

Victoria Place serves a catchment of 1.1m people with an available spend of £2.6bn.  41% of Woking’s catchment are from CACI’s ‘Affluent Achievers’ Acorn profile, compared to 31% for the South East.  Upon completion of the new development, Woking’s market potential will increase by 11% to £226m.