Best UK areas to open retail warehouse
280 local authorities ranked by the Gera Business Location Score — real commercial rent, local wages, business rates and market density.
Which UK areas are best for opening a retail warehouse / foodstore in 2026?
The best UK area to open a retail warehouse / foodstore is North Norfolk (East), with a Gera Business Location Score of 81.6/100: premises at £60/m²/yr and local median pay of £26,296. Blaby ranks lowest at 21/100. Ranked across 280 local authorities from 2025 government open data; re-dated annually.
Top 10 areas for retail warehouse
| # | Local authority | Region | GBLS | Rent (£/m²/yr) | Local pay | Rates / 100 m² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Norfolk | East | 81.6/100 | £60 | £26,296 | £2,592 |
| 2 | Winchester | South East | 80.2/100 | £139 | £34,568 | £6,005 |
| 3 | Cotswold | South West | 78.9/100 | £103 | £29,655 | £4,450 |
| 4 | East Lindsey | East Midlands | 76.4/100 | £86 | £26,724 | £3,715 |
| 5 | Derbyshire Dales | East Midlands | 75.9/100 | £99 | £28,874 | £4,277 |
| 6 | Herefordshire, County of | West Midlands | 75.6/100 | £69 | £28,366 | £2,981 |
| 7 | Ceredigion | Wales | 74.8/100 | £86 | £27,868 | £3,715 |
| 8 | Blackburn with Darwen | North West | 74.4/100 | £75 | £30,572 | £3,240 |
| 9 | North Devon | South West | 73.7/100 | £96 | £27,526 | £4,147 |
| 10 | Westmorland and Furness | North West | 73.3/100 | £73 | £32,683 | £3,154 |
Filter by your budget
Set a premises size and monthly budget to shortlist the areas that fit.
Budget covers estimated annual rent (VOA rateable value × floor area) plus the 2026-27 small-business rates bill (43.2p multiplier), spread over 12 months. Real reliefs (e.g. Small Business Rate Relief) can reduce the rates portion further.
Best areas to open a retail warehouse / foodstore within £2,000/month
- 1North NorfolkEastGBLS 81.6≈ £573/mo
- 2WinchesterSouth EastGBLS 80.2≈ £1,327/mo
- 3CotswoldSouth WestGBLS 78.9≈ £983/mo
- 4East LindseyEast MidlandsGBLS 76.4≈ £821/mo
- 5Derbyshire DalesEast MidlandsGBLS 75.9≈ £945/mo
- 6Herefordshire, County ofWest MidlandsGBLS 75.6≈ £659/mo
- 7CeredigionWalesGBLS 74.8≈ £821/mo
- 8Blackburn with DarwenNorth WestGBLS 74.4≈ £716/mo
- 9North DevonSouth WestGBLS 73.7≈ £916/mo
- 10Westmorland and FurnessNorth WestGBLS 73.3≈ £697/mo
- 11PowysWalesGBLS 72.7≈ £878/mo
- 12MeltonEast MidlandsGBLS 72.6≈ £611/mo
- 13North East LincolnshireYorkshire and The HumberGBLS 72.5≈ £716/mo
- 14Pembrokeshire / Sir BenfroWalesGBLS 72.2≈ £831/mo
- 15PendleNorth WestGBLS 71.6≈ £678/mo
Retail warehouse by region
Frequently asked questions
- Where is the cheapest place to open a retail warehouse / foodstore in the UK?
- By premises cost alone, the lowest VOA rateable value among the 280 ranked areas is £60/m²/yr in North Norfolk. But the Gera Business Location Score also weighs local wages and market demand: on the combined score, North Norfolk ranks #1 at 81.6/100.
- How much is rent and business rates for retail warehouse premises in North Norfolk?
- In North Norfolk, the VOA rateable value for this property type is £60 per m² per year. For a 100 m² unit that is about £6,000/yr rent, plus roughly £2,592/yr business rates at the 2026-27 small-business multiplier (43.2p) — before any Small Business Rate Relief.
- What data is this based on?
- VOA Non-Domestic Rating Business Floorspace (rateable value per m², 31 March 2025), ONS UK Business Counts 2025 (market density), ONS ASHE 2025 (local wages) and ONS mid-2024 population — all Open Government Licence v3.0, joined on the ONS local-authority code.
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Contains public sector information published by Valuation Office Agency and Office for National Statistics and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: VOA Business Floorspace + ONS Business Counts + ONS ASHE (work geography) + ONS population estimates (2025 (VOA 31 March 2025; ASHE 2025 provisional; Business Counts 2025; population mid-2024), published December 2025).