New Chester Lidl store set to open in next eight weeks
It's one of 19 store openings planned by the discount food store chain over the next two months
A Lidl supermarket(Image: Hadyn Iball / North Wales Live)
Up to 640 jobs are being created at discount retailer Lidl under plans to open 19 stores over the next eight weeks - including one in Chester. A new store is being constructed at Caldy Valley Retail Park in Great Boughton.
The German-owned supermarket chain's latest openings follow last year's milestone of launching its 1,000th store. The firm is also investing £43 million in revamping more than 70 shops across the UK.
Changes as part of the store overhaul include new tills and larger freezers to offer a larger range of products. It is also launching new energy-saving features, such as chillers that use natural refrigerants and smart lighting systems that reduce electricity use.
Richard Taylor, chief real estate officer at Lidl’s UK operations, said: “We’re starting the new year as we mean to go on, with a major investment that reinforces our commitment to delivering the best experience for customers and creating a positive impact for the communities we serve. With this push, we’re set on winning more shoppers across the nation and claiming an even bigger share of the market.”
Lidl is currently Britain’s sixth-largest grocery chain, according to experts at Worldpanel, after making the biggest market share gains in the sector in recent months. Experts believe Lidl could overtake rival Morrisons, which is currently in fifth place, in the coming months if its current momentum continues.
Recent figures from the group showed it enjoyed a strong Christmas, with a 10% surge in sales seeing it notch up more than £1.1 billion in turnover in the four weeks leading up to Christmas Eve.
Here are a list of Lidl’s store openings in the next eight weeks:
– Basildon, Laindon, Essex
– Birmingham, Kingstanding, West Midlands
– Brough, Welton Road, Yorkshire and the Humber
– Burntwood, Staffordshire
– Calne, Wiltshire
– Chester, Caldy Valley Road, Cheshire
– Dereham, Norfolk
– Havant, Purbrook Way, Hampshire
– Hereford, Belmont Road, Herefordshire
– Horley, Surrey
– Hucknall, Watnall Road, Nottinghamshire
– Stamford Hill, London
– Walworth Road, London
– Reading, Tilehurst, Berkshire
– Royal Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire
– Salisbury, Churchill Way West, Wiltshire
– Sandford, Dorset
– Sutton high street, Greater London
– Tring, Hertfordshire