The Scots ‘ghost town’ shopping mall that has been abandoned for over 20 years

Shopping centres all across Scotland are currently packed with people rushing to get their Christmas shopping done ahead of the big day.

With Scots around the country engaging in last-minute panic-buying, you are unlikely to come across a mall that isn’t absolutely rammed. That is, unless you head to the Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village in West Lothian.

This long-deserted shopping centre, situated between Edinburgh and Glasgow by the M8 motorway, first opened its doors in 1996. Once home to more than 40 stores, it was even said to be Scotland’s premier destination for designer clothes.

As reported by Edinburgh Live, the 50,000-square-feet shopping hub saw more than a million visitors during its first year. Excited customers were also told that the centre would even be extended to add leisure facilities including a snow centre and golf course.

Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village’s unique location between the country’s two biggest cities made it a convenient destination for hundreds of thousands of Scots. It was also open seven days a week, while brands available included Versace, DKNY, Calvin Klein, Rockport and Levis.

Customers could even enjoy its special Leisureland facility, including a soft play centre for young kids, go karting, an entertainment centre, and much more. There were also cafés and restaurants at Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village where you could take a break from shopping and get something to eat.

Given its massive initial success, it is no wonder that bosses wanted to expand the shopping centre. They filed an application for an £18-million extension to West Lothian Council, but sadly these plans would never materialise.

The company’s financial situation began to deteriorate by the turn of the millennium, which was only compounded by the opening of the brand new Livingston Designer Outlet in 2000. People like what is new and exciting, and so both businesses and customers flocked to the new shopping centre.

Just a year later, a lot of the stores at Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village had shut their doors, while most of the rest had significantly discounted their products. In 2004, the decision was made to close the centre, and the site has been empty ever since.

Chairman of Freeport Sean Collidge revealed at the time that the new Livingston shopping centre was the main reason for the closure.

He said: “This scheme was 100 per cent let when it opened in 1996 and had four tremendous years. Then retail in Scotland became overpopulated in the central belt.”

West Lothian Council have rejected calls to construct housing in the area, but state in their Local Plan they are keen to see it redeveloped.

A spokesperson commented: “The re-development, or re-use, of Westwood (Freeport), near West Calder, previously operating as a factory outlet centre, is supported by the council.

“Leisure and tourist uses, specialised employment, starter units (Class 4), or institutional uses appropriate to a rural location will be supported.

“Some element of new or extended building outwith the development envelope on site and/or housing (very low density and a maximum of 30 houses meriting a rural location, all confined to the development envelope) will be considered, where this is shown to be necessary in terms of the financial viability of an appropriate scheme.”

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