The demise of Woolworths and customers feeling the pinch has seen discount retailers and pound shops take over prime pitches in the UK.
The discount sector has seen significant growth over the past two years, with the UK's top ten cities experiencing an increase of 60% in store numbers.

According to research by the Local Data Company, backed by the British Property Federation (BPF), the demise of Woolworths has left prime units available on high streets across the UK, allowing discount stores to move away from secondary areas and onto the 'main pitch'.

To date, 54 of the 807 ex-Woolworths stores have been taken over by discount retailers, with Poundland alone occupying 30.

So far, London has dominated the sector, with 298 discount stores - around a quarter of the UK total. Manchester sees the second highest concentration with 25 stores.

BPF chief executive Liz Peace said: "Whatever opinions people may have about pound stores, they are growing in popularity and more importantly, generate jobs and footfall that benefits other retailers on the high street."

The new acquisitions have seen discount stores moving into what was previously uncharted territory for the sector, targeting affluent areas such as Stratford upon Avon, Oxford, Chippenham and Tunbridge Wells.

As a result, the value chains have enhanced their customer base, with Poundland, for example, experiencing a 22% increase in shoppers from the AB group.

Ms Peace added: "The increase in discount stores represents a marked change in the psychology of shoppers. Rather than shopping for a particular good or commodity, people are going out with a set sum of cash knowing that they will be able to get a specific number of items. And in practice, they often end up buying more."

Keynote forecasts that the entire UK discount retailing market will be worth £24.9bn by 2011, with an expected growth of around 9% each year. This however, includes a wider definition of discount store, such as Aldi, Lidl and supermarkets' non-food offering.

BNP Paribas Real Estate head of retail Ian Parish commented: "Discount retailers have undoubtedly seen an opportunity to acquire new stores at rents more easily viable for them when they are selling goods at lower margins than their more mainstream counterparts. Clearly, this sector is also seeing a wider customer base walking through its doors with household budgets stretched and, combined with cheaper rents, this seems to be leading them on the expansion trail."