Nisa has confirmed to Better Retailing plans to launch a new Nisa Express fascia and given further information about how it will fit within the existing Nisa family of formats.

The symbol group’s sales director, Steve Leach, told Better Retailing the Nisa Express format, which will be unveiled at Nisa’s annual retailer conference in Warwickshire in March, is part of a major expansion drive. It will target retailers with smaller-format stores and will have different minimum order terms, which are yet to be determined.

“We want to offer a proposition and format for every size of business,” said Leach, who said he was discussing Nisa Express as a replacement for the Loco format with store owners.

“We have 40 Loco stores, but it’s well documented the brand hasn’t really grown.

Read more: EXCLUSIVE: ‘Nisa Express’ – secret plans for small shop fascia revealed

“The terms might not be right for everyone, but we’re testing the waters and looking at new ways of working with retailers.”

Leach added that the company is aiming to target new retailer acquisitions in London and Scotland, as well as forecourt retailers. He said: “We’ve been working with data companies to find out where we’ve got the fewest store numbers.

“We’ve also looked at forecourts, and we have fewer than 200 sites.”

He said he is confident that Nisa will reach 500 store additions this year, bringing its total store count to more than 4,000. Existing stores are managed by 1,300 retailers.

Leach said Nisa had attracted new retailers through a combination of working closely with the NFRN, recommendations by Co-op and incentives such as a £2,000 joining bonus.

Read more: Fascia report: Is Nisa the right fascia partner for your store?