The shop has teased “it’s coming soon”
The new shop front on London Road.
A new worldwide convenience store is opening in the heart of Liverpool. In 2008, London Road was a very different place to the street you see today. A few failing pubs, a Cash Converters, and a couple of furniture stores were among the businesses on the street which hadn’t yet been boarded up.
Its main use was as a route for buses to drive in and out of Liverpool city centre – and TJ Hughes, which has since disappeared. The Islington road used to be central to the city’s textiles history and home to a wide range of shops, as well as 27 pubs and two cinemas. 26 of the pubs and both cinemas have gone.
However, in the years following, the “rough around the edges” street grew into what it arguably now one of the city’s best streets.
No longer a home for disused buildings, blemished with wooden windows and weathered business logos, it’s been transformed into a proud high street with dozens of unique independent businesses.
The new Spar on London Road.
With this in mind, it’s no wonder huge businesses are now investing in the area, the latest of which being SPAR. The convenience store operates globally as the world’s largest voluntary food retail chain, with over 13,800 stores in 48 countries across four continents as of 2026.
Founded in 1932 in the Netherlands, it operates on a partnership model, priding itself on providing a strong international presence while focusing on local community needs.
The London Road store has teased “it’s coming soon”, with the signage and posters having already gone up. The ECHO reached out to the company for further information.
At the time of writing, job postings indicate the new store is still searching for a supervisor to work at the unit 105-113 London Road site.
SPAR already has several convenience stores located across Liverpool, including areas such as Anfield, Scotland Road, Childwall, and Litherland. Many of these branches operate 24 hours a day, offering easy access to groceries and essentials at any time.
The new Spar shop is located not far from London Road’s Tesco
London Road has become a melting pot of different cultures and nationalities, a fact which is reflected in the restaurants, cafes and shops which line the street.
Take Taza for instance, an international food store which specialises in Turkish, Asian, Middle Eastern and Eastern European food, as well as Halal meat. The food is fresh and comes at a relatively low price, and there’s also a huge selection of items on offer – including things you won’t find anywhere else.
The shop bakes fresh bread, pastries, and cakes for any occasion. It also has a butcher, selling high-quality meat at affordable prices.
On London Road, there are also several places where you can get a shawarma kebab, several butchers (one selling fish too), an appliances store, a dessert shop, an array of Asian restaurants, a jacket potato van, a tailor and an intriguing second-hand book shop – Henry Bohn.