Tesco has applied to Daventry District Council to build a mezzanine floor within its existing New Street store.
The new floor space would be used to expand and improve existing lines within the shop.

Externally very little would change, with only part of the roof being altered and the maximum height remaining the same. But the new floor would add an extra 18,750 sq ft of retail floor space to the existing 31,530 sq ft.

A spokesman for Tesco said: "We have been looking at ways of improving the store, which can get quite congested.
"Installing a mezzanine is quite a standard way to make use of the space already there.

"The extra space will mean we can expand certain lines, particularly non-food – things like clothing and smaller electrical items – and allow us to lay the store out in a better way.
"A lot of the work can be done when the store is closed. It will all be done with the minimum of disruption to customers."

Shoppers would get to the new floor with their trolleys using large travelators near the current entrance.

The plans were discussed by Daventry Town Council at a meeting of its planning committee on Monday night. Councillor Glenda Simmonds, chairman of the planning committee, said: "We don't have a problem with the proposals.
"But we feel that the access to the site and the car parking needs to be looked at.

"If we're going to double the store there will be a lot more traffic using the car park.
"That all needs to be addressed before the district council approves any of this."

However some local independent businesses are calling for the town and district council to make a stand on this issue.
Fiona Hopkinson, manager at Sadlers Fine Foods in the High Street, said: "What Tesco is doing is pushing out local businesses.

"We're trying to push the town forward and get high-spending shoppers to come here. Having a two-storey Tesco here is ridiculous. The councils should be supporting the small independents and helping to bring them in."
Davinder Dosanjh, owner of the Paper Shop in High Street, said: "I wouldn't have a problem if they were bringing something new to the town.
"But they take on business already provided in the town and skim off what they can. They do not add to the town, only take customers away."

However Adrian Roberts, manager of The Kitchen Appliance Centre in High Street, said: "We've always had low-price competition in Daventry, mainly from Argos.
"I believe that all competition is healthy, but people in Daventry like to support local family businesses with traditional values."

Daventry District Council gets the final say on the proposals. Members of the public can comment on the plans by visiting the council's Lodge Road offices.