The Co-operative Group recently hosted an opening weekend for the new shop, which is located in Rooksdown.
The store features a number of facilities, including a bakery, a cash machine and a gas and electricity pay point facility. It is expected that the store will be a success and developments for other chain outlets like Subway and Costa Coffee are already planned for the same area.
To entice shoppers into the store, first customers to spend more than £5 were given special chocolate gifts. The press officer for The Southern Co-operative, Sophie Boxall, commented on the opening day, saying:
“It was really busy. There were big queues of people trying to get in, and we got a lot of positive comments about having a store there.
“The store wants to be part of the local community and wants to include it in as many events as possible.”
The Co-operative Group is known for its community and charity initiatives and regional businesses often benefit from new store openings. For example, with the new Rooksdown store, printing companies in Basingstoke could be called upon to provide services like POS printing.
Around 70 people were present at the opening event and 14 new jobs have been created covering various roles in the store. It is hoped that more jobs can be made available with the opening of other shops nearby.