Discount shopping mall the Chatham Dockside Centre has been sold to a retail management specialist for £9.1 million.

WD Ltd – which also owns shopping areas in Newcastle, Huddersfield and Derby – has bought the 163,000 sq ft site from Matrix.

It has 43 stores and food outlets, led by flagship shop the Range, as well as a Marks & Spencer Outlet, Clarks, Sports Direct and Choice, which sells some discounted lines from Next.

Peter Everest of WD Ltd said the company would “invest heavily” at the site, continuing its “longstanding involvement in the outlet sector”.

He added: “We will look to enhance the existing offer and drive its attraction as both a local and destination centre.”

The deal was funded with finance from ICG Longbow. The site will be managed by a subsidiary company of WD Ltd.

The Dockside Centre is found on the Chatham Maritime Estate, one of the largest urban regeneration schemes in the country.

It features more than 2,000 new homes, a university campus, offices, an Odeon cinema and restaurants, a 500-berth marina.

The nearby Chatham Historic Dockyard was the launch site of HMS Victory some 250 years ago.