British clothing chain Next will take the wraps off its first Bulgarian store, in Sofia’s The Mall shopping centre, on September 1.

“This is our first Bulgarian shop and it will sell women’s, men’s and kid’s wear. We opted for the retail centre on Tsarigradsko Shausse boulevard because we’re looking for locations people like to visit and it has good infrastructure,” Gagik Bagramyan, manager of the new Next store, told Dnevnik.

He added that the British chain plans to open more Bulgarian units, including a home furnishing store.

“The next one will also be in Sofia but we’re looking for suitable locations in other major cities,” Bagramyan without elaborating.

The Next chain was set up in 1864 and currently comprises 500 stores in the UK and Ireland, and another 180 in Europe, Russia, Asia and Japan. For the first half of 2010, the company reported a 3.1% rise in profit from the year-ago period. However, it expects demand on the clothing market will remain weak through the end of the year and consumer behaviour will tend to be cautious. There for full-year sales are seen in the range -1.5% to +1.5%.

Meanwhile, the Okaidi kid’s clothing store opens its store in The Mall in September. Esprit, Pink Woman and Colin’s will also launch their stores in the shopping centres.