£15.5m in rent and 12 million shoppers a year – Intu Chapelfield in numbers

Intu Chapelfield in Norwich. Photo: Steve Adams (Image: Copyright Archant Norfolk 2015)

The shopping centre was built on the former Caleys, later Rowntree Mackintosh and Nestle, chocolate factory.

Today Chapelfield brings an annual footfall of 12m through its doors, the equivalent of the population of Norfolk visiting every month.

There are 90 shop units with 530,000 sq ft of retail, leisure and catering space.

Shoppers spend an average of one hour and six minutes in the centre with 66% visiting at least twice in a month.

Staff working in the kitchen at Caleys/Mackintosh factory in Norwich in May 1959. Photo: Archant Library (Image: Archant Library)

The net rent for Chapelfield is £15.5m per year.

It was bought by Intu and rebranded as Intu Chapelfield in 2013.

History of the site

Workers at Caleys chocolate factory Norwich. Photo: Archant Library (Image: Archant Library)

After being founded in London Street, Caleys began producing drinks and then cocoa and chocolate at Chapelfield East and by 1904 employed 700 people. Caleys was bought by John Mackintosh and Sons in 1932 and its marching chocolate was shipped to soldiers during the Second World War.

Later, after the development of the Rolo, Caramac and Muchies brands the company was bought by Rowntree in 1969 and employed around 1,000 workers – making 40,000 Easter eggs a year.

In the 1980s Nestle bought Rowntree and eight years later closed the Norwich factory.

Nestle Rowntree (formerly Mackintosh/Caley's) chocolate factory at Norwich. The last of 900 workers left their jobs in the autumn of 1996 as the factory closed. The site is now being developed into shops, homes and leisure facilities (2003).Dated 16 February 1996. Photo: Archant Library (Image: Archant Library)