Lincolnshire Co-op has opened a new £1.5m store in Clipstone, Notts, creating 15 new jobs.
The retail society is offering a range of services from the outlet including groceries, baked goods from Gadsby’s Bakery in Southwell, food-to-go options, chilled beers and wines, 100% British meat, takeaway Costa Coffee and a free-to-use ATM.
Products are on sale from the society’s Love Local range, which features goods sourced from the area, including apple juice from Starkey’s Fruit Farm in Southwell. A Free From range will also be on offer.
The food store is in the Cavendish Park Estate. It features a car park with 29 spaces and opens from 7am until 10pm seven days a week.
There are two units at the site which are being marketed to let and would be suitable for a range of uses.
Store manager Fay Pardy said: “It’s amazing to finally be open and start serving the community. All our colleagues have been fantastic and we’ve loved speaking to customers all morning.
“We have our own dividend card, which means members can collect and spend dividend, and our Community Champions fundraising scheme raises money for local good causes.”
The co-op has also moved its Lincoln city centre pharmacy from City Square Centre to Sincil Street – where the society is leading a restoration of the historic Cornhill Quarter development. Buildings are being sympathetically adapted for modern use without compromising the historic character of the area, says Lincolnshire.
Related: Lincolnshire’s new store at heart of city centre redevelopment
The pharmacy building dates back to the late-1860s and has previously been home to a printer, a gramophone and record supplier and a butcher’s shop. Its frontage has been restored and the signage has hand-painted; inside, it is a modern pharmacy with a customer area, dispensary and consultation room.
Services include health checks, medicine reviews and an electronic prescription service.
Pharmacist Patrizia Loria said: “Our new location is really convenient for people who live, work and visit the city centre as we’re near the bus station and train station and in the heart of the Cornhill Quarter.
“We provide lots of health services and advice and we expect our electronic prescription service to be popular.”
Lincolnshire Co-op also runs a food store on Sincil Street and the post office inside the City Square Centre. It wants to relocate the post office to alternative city centre premises. Eventually, the aim is to replace the City Square Centre, but this is still in the planning stage.
