Independent furniture retailer Gillies of Broughty Ferry has been given the green light for a new site in Inverness.

The retailer, which already operates out of its store on Chapel Street in Inverness, submitted a planning application to Highland Council to convert a former BMW Car Showroom into a furniture premises.

The plans state that the former Harry Fairburn BMW showroom on Longman Road will be turned into a furniture showroom offering space of more than 960 square metres on the ground floor and an additional 540 sqm on the mezzanine level.

Granting approval, council planners said: “Given its highly accessible roadside location, this part of the industrial estate is well suited to bulky-goods retail outlets which require a public-facing frontage and high footfall but are too large to be accommodated within the city centre.

“The area is characterised by a range of similar uses, including other bulky-goods retail outlets, car dealerships, the sheriff court, police station and office developments.

“In this context, the proposed furniture warehouse is considered compatible with the existing character and established uses of the surrounding area, and the principle of the development is supported.”

Gillies, which has operated from Chapel Street since 2017, also trades from stores in Broughty Ferry, Dingwall, Elgin, Aberdeen and Perth.