A major DIY store on the edge of Perth city centre has gone on the market with a £12 million price tag, sparking fears for its future.
Bosses at B&Q have moved to allay worries about job losses, after it emerged its Crieff Road branch was up for sale.
The 15-acre outlet which has a workforce of about 100 is being off-loaded by the site’s owner and is being marketed as a “prime retail investment” by property agents Ryden.
A local councillor said the sale has cast a shadow of uncertainty over the store’s future and said steps need to be taken to ensure businesses like B&Q stay in Perth.
In March the DIY giant announced it would close as many as 60 stores over the next two years as part of a restructuring of its UK and Ireland business.
Parent company Kingfisher which also owns Screwfix plans to axe about 15% of surplus space as a result of the review of its 360-strong B&Q estate.
The move was announced as it posted a 7.5% drop in annual profits to £675 million, after sales fell by 1.4% to £11 billion in the year to January 31.
Across Tayside and Fife, B&Q has home improvement stores in Dundee, Arbroath, Leven, Perth, Kirkcaldy and Dunfermline.
A spokeswoman for the company stressed that the sale of its Perth store would not have an impact on trading.
She said: “We are aware the landlord is looking to sell their interest in the store but this will not have any effect on B&Q Perth, our colleagues or customers.”
Local councillor John Flynn said he was unaware the shop is on the market. “Obviously, this is going to cause a lot of uncertainty,” he said. “It would be a real blow to the area if B&Q were to go. This is exactly the sort of company we need to be attracting to Perth.”
The property has been let to B&Q until August 2026, at a rent of more than £853,000 a year. Ryden is offering the site at offers of more than £12.25 million.
Its marketing states: “The proposition offers an opportunity to acquire a well-secured retail warehouse investment in a very strong location.”
Developer Waverley Vintners (now dissolved) won planning permission for the outlet in 2005. B&Q relocated to Crieff Road from its smaller branch at St Catherine’s Retail Park.
This year rival DIY firm Homebase confirmed it would shut down its Perth store with a loss of more than 30 jobs.
Home Retail Group which also includes Argos said last year that a number of its stores which were “unprofitable or are in decline” would be closing.