Lidl has revealed three Suffolk towns where it wants to launch new stores.

The supermarket chain has announced that it is offering up to £22,500 to anyone who helps identify sites for new stores in East Anglia, with three Suffolk towns included in a shortlist of desired destinations.

Bury St Edmunds, Saxmundham and Lowestoft were named by Lidl as areas where the business would be interested in acquiring sites for potential store developments.

The discount retailer, which is investing £1.3 billion in its expansion across 2021 and 2022, has revealed that it is offering a finder’s fee to members of the public who successfully identify suitable sites for new Lidl stores.

The fee is either 1.5% of the total freehold purchase price or 10% of the first year’s rent for leaseholds.

For a site to be considered, it is required to have the following:

  • Prominent locations with easy access and strong pedestrian or traffic flow.
  • Freehold, leasehold or long leasehold opportunities.
  • Unit sizes between 18,000 and 26,500 square feet and over 100 dedicated car parking spaces.
  • Over 1.5 acres for standalone stores or up to four acres for mixed-use schemes.
  • Town centre or edge of centre and retail parks.

Richard Taylor, chief development officer at Lidl GB, said: "We know that the majority of British shoppers still love doing their shopping in person and we are as committed as ever to opening new stores and enhancing our existing ones.

"There are still communities up and down the country that are telling us how much they want, and need, a Lidl store.

"We work with some of the best people in the industry to identify new sites, but we also know how engaged our future and existing customers are and we want to build on this.

"Our finder’s fees are, therefore, available to absolutely anyone that can identify a viable option for a new store that we’re not already aware of."