Viewing: www.dailystar.co.uk

When the Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village first opened it was home to more than 40 shops, such as Versace, DKNY and Calvin Klein - but it now sits abandoned

Bookmark
Share
Comments

News

Adam CaillerSenior reporter and MSN lead

09:55, 1 JUN 2026

In November 2004, bosses decided to shut the centre after years of declining business

(Image: Daily Mirror/YouTube/Bearded Reality)

A derelict shopping centre in Scotland abandoned to rot after all 40 of its shops shut down - with new images from inside showing the true scale of abandonment. The Five Sisters Freeport Shopping Village in West Lothian previously attracted enormous crowds when it opened in the 1990s.

Today, the site sits empty between Edinburgh and Glasgow alongside the M8 motorway, with Coconut Island Drones giving a new look inside the still-rotting shopping site. The retail destination first opened its doors to customers in September 1996, covering around 50,000 square feet.

At launch, it featured more than 40 shops and was home to prestigious brands such as Versace, DKNY and Calvin Klein. The complex also included a Leisureland facility with an entertainment centre and soft play zone, alongside plans to add further leisure facilities in future.

In its first year of operation, the shopping centre is reported to have attracted approximately one million customers. Following this early success, proposals were submitted to West Lothian Council for an 18million development.

The scheme included new leisure additions like snow facilities, a children's winter wonderland and a golf course. These plans never came to fruition. The opening of Livingston Designer Outlet in 2000 is widely thought to have sealed the shopping village's fate.

Countless shoppers began visiting the newer destination instead. Within a short period, visitor numbers at Five Sisters began to nosedive. By the end of 2001, the centre's fate was already hanging in the balance. Freeport chairman Sean Collidge had previously revealed: "This scheme was 100% let when it opened in 1996 and had four tremendous years. Then retail in Scotland became overpopulated in the central belt."

As footfall collapsed, shops started fleeing the site. Some relocated to other retail parks, while others closed their doors for good. In November 2004, bosses decided to shut the centre after years of declining custom.

Following its closure, the buildings have stayed mostly empty. The site has been abandoned to decay and parts of the car park are now overrun with weeds. The former shopping village has reportedly been used as a setting for zombie films and television shows because of its run-down condition.

Several efforts have been launched to revive the site over the years, including proposals for housing development. However, none of these suggested projects have come to fruition.

A West Lothian Council spokesman had previously said: "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."

For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.