The property has now gone on the market
The plans would see the iconic strip of shops undergo improvement works(Image: DL Design Studio/Leicester City Council)
Plans to bring a row of iconic Leicester city centre shops back to life have been given the green light.
The scheme at 9-15 Cank Street will see the upper floors transformed into new homes, including the former fancy dress store Paper Tiger.
The iconic store announced its closure in January 2024 after 50 years in the city. The vacant buildings are now up for auction with a multi-million-pound redevelopment plan ready to go.
Since then, the buildings have sat vacant and applicant JGM (Nottingham) Ltd said the upper floors had “remained unused for a number of years” with the rear extensions and roofs becoming “dilapidated and unusable”.
The empty premises hit the headlines in November 2025 when a fire led to the discovery of a cannabis farm hidden inside one of the shops.
Leicester City Council officially approved a scheme to bring the premises back to life on January 28, 2026.
The site is a short walk from the Clock Tower(Image: DL Design Studio/Leicester City Council/ Google Earth)
The plans will see the upper floors converted into 23 bedrooms of new accommodation, including a third-floor extension.
The approved scheme will provide two studio flats and five houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), comprising two seven-beds, one four-bed and two three-beds. HMOs are homes where separate households live together, sharing communal areas like kitchens and living rooms.
The buildings span 9,039 sq ft and sit within the Market Place Conservation Area next to a listed building. Because of this, strict design conditions were imposed, including archaeological monitoring before any building work begins to protect potential historical remains on the site.
The developer plans to “restore and improve” the shop front facades facing Cank Street, with the design described as “contemporary” and “respectful to the neighbouring traditional architecture”.
The extensions at the rear of number 9 are also set to be demolished as part of the works. JGM originally had plans for student flats but switched to general residences following conversations with the council.
The developer has also said it intends to create a “simple ground floor commercial unit” in the space alongside the new homes.
Now with planning in the bag, the freehold site has gone up for auction with an estimated gross development value of £2.375 million.
Vacant possession is available with a six-week completion, and the site sits close to both the Cank Street and Leicester Market regeneration projects.