Tesco plan divides town
Last updated at 15:48, Monday, 16 February 2009
TESCO has confirmed it will open in Ulverston’s former Woolworths store.
Woolies left the building on December 29 after the company went into administration.
Tesco will lease the Market Street building and open one of its Tesco Express convenience stores “as soon as possible”.
It will offer between 20 and 30 jobs for “local people” – potentially 13 more than Woolworths did.
Juliette Bishop, Tesco Express corporate affairs manager, said: “We have just taken over the building and will convert the store, which may involve some minor works.
“Subject to any planning permission needed, we hope to open the Tesco Express store late this spring.”
Rumours that Tesco planned to take over the shop had already circulated around Ulverston.
Many residents think the nationwide retailer does not fit the town’s traditional market town image.
Some are also concerned it will dominate trade and smaller independent traders will suffer.
Catherine Wren, an Ulverston Victoria High School Sixth Form student, created a Facebook group on Wednesday in opposition to Tesco Express coming to Ulverston.
This morning there were already 193 members.
Miss Wren said: “Quite a lot of my friends work in little shops in Ulverston and they’re worried about losing their jobs from the competition. Ulverston is just so quirky with its small shops and I think it would ruin its spirit.”
Overnight, two rival Facebook groups titled “Yes to a Tesco Express in Ulverston” and “No to a Tesco Express in Ulverston” have appeared, with 55 and 31 members respectively.
Reader Fern Oxley said in a letter to the Evening Mail: “If Tesco becomes established in Ulverston, it will be an end of an era and I believe we’d lose respect from tourists that do come and visit. We should remain being about providing a unique and quirky experience. Not just another street, in another town with that oppressively familiar red, white and blue.”
Ralph Spours, Ulverston Traders’ Association chairman, welcomes the fact the shop will no longer stand empty. He said: “We certainly don’t want a prime shop as big as Woolworths standing empty for any length of time.
“Obviously I’m afraid there’s going to be some casualties in the town because they (Tesco Express) sell groceries, newspapers and magazines and things like that, but of course so did Woolworths.”
Ulverston mayor councillor Janette Jenkinson said: “I heard that Iceland were probably going in and I think out of the two I would have preferred Iceland.
“I’m just pleased that the space has been taken up with a unit.
“Obviously, Tesco wanting to come here shows an amount of confidence in the town in a way. I can only see it being competition to two stores in town – that’s the Co-op and Bargain Booze.”
Asked if there was a scheme in place to employ former Woolworths staff, Tesco Express’ Ms Bishop said: “There is no agreement in place for that to happen, but if they want to apply we would happily welcome their applications.” Ms Bishop said that, in general, prices at the Express store will be more expensive than at Barrow’s Tesco supermarket on Hindpool Road.
She said: “It is a smaller convenience store so there are higher costs, there is a little difference.
“But there are some things that are cheaper than in the bigger stores.”
Tesco Express is likely to go head-to-head with the Co-op, also in Market Street.
Yesterday, Co-op senior public relations officer Gideon Fireman said in a statement: “The Co-operative is the UK’s leading convenience retailer, competing against all the major multiples at locations across the UK.
“We have served Ulverston for more than 30 years and have a loyal customer base.” Tesco Express corporate affairs manager Ms Bishop confirmed Tesco has no plans to open any more stores in Furness at the moment.
She said: “There are no plans for Tesco Express to move into the former Woolworths Dalton Road store in Barrow.”
Woolworths administrator Deloitte said it was looking for firms to take over leases of stores but a spokeswoman said they had no details about the Barrow store at this stage.
The larger former Boots store in Dalton Road has been empty for much of the last decade but the Woolworths store is seen as more attractive because it is closer to Portland Walk.
First published at 11:52, Friday, 09 January 2009
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk
well i have been in tesco main store and found that the prices are the sameas the metro, i will use it alot as i go to barrow for my shoping,so it will cut out going to barrow and i will prob buy from other shops in ulverston to . wish we had some thing like a b&q in ulverston ,that would be great
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Posted by Milner on 7 July 2009 at 14:12