AN UPMARKET retailer famous for its fragrances is set to make a splash into a Southampton shopping centre.

Hugo Boss will occupy a 2,116 sq ft store on the upper floor of Westquay shopping centre, creating at least 10 new jobs in the process.

The German chain, founded in 1924, sells fashion for both men and women, in addition to sportswear, shoes, accessories, and fragrances, and is renowned for epitomising authentic, understated luxury.

Worldwide, the company which had a net profit of £17m last year, employs 13,800 people in 126 countries at 7,600 sales points around the globe.

Stephen Born, managing director at Hugo Boss, said: “We’re excited to be opening our first Boss store in Southampton, and our new location at Westquay provides the perfect showcase for our full menswear offering.

“From wardrobe staples to workwear essentials, our customers in Southampton can choose styles from our Boss collections ranging from formal suiting and precision tailoring to our casual and leisurewear.”

Iain Mitchell, UK commercial director at Hammerson, added: “Securing Hugo Boss for Westquay is a fantastic result, and signals that demand from premium brands for prime retail space remains strong.

“We have been focused on implementing a proactive asset management strategy to attract more aspirational, high-end retailers to this part of the centre to better serve customer demand, and I am delighted to see the success of that strategy.”

The store had previously come under fire in September 2015 when the company was fined £1.2m in relation to the death in June 2013 of a four-year-old boy who died four days after suffering fatal head injuries at its store in Bicester, Oxfordshire when a steel-framed fitting-room mirror weighing 120kg fell on him.

The signing of Hugo Boss at the centre also follows that of Smiggle, Joules, Yankee Candle, Laing Edinburgh, Lush and Russell & Bromley.

Hugo Boss will open up later this month, adding to its portfolio of stores across the globe and the UK with existing stores at Cabot Circus, Bristol, Dundrum, Dublin and Bullring, Birmingham.

No exact completion date for the Southampton store has been set but it is understood it will open by the end of November.