JD Wetherspoon, whose chairman is Tim Martin (pictured), has bought the former Bairds department store in Hamilton.
The property has lain empty since closing in 2014 and Wetherspoon’s plans to turn it into a pub have advanced after South Lanarkshire Council approved the sale in February last year.
Wetherspoon, which will spend about £2.5m on the development, has also acquired planning permission and licensing for the site but still needs to receive a building warrant before work can take place. The opening of the pub, which would have capacity for almost 900 people and feature terraces on the ground and first floors, would create 70 jobs.