Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
John Lewis has announced that its new store in the Essex town of Chelmsford will open its doors on Thursday September 29.
The 90,000sq ft shop, which represents an £18m investment, will anchor the second phase of the Bond Street development. The scheme, which will include 20 retail units, is owned by Aquila.
As well as offering more than 65,000 fashion, beauty, home and electrical products, the branch will include a beauty treatment room, a foreign exchange bureau and a nursery advice service.
Customers will also be able to take advantage of John Lewis’ click & collect facility and benefit from 20 minutes of free parking in the Bond Street car parks.
Laura Rawstron, branch manager of John Lewis Chelmsford, said: “I’m thrilled to be able to confirm that John Lewis Chelmsford will open on Thursday 29 September. The business has had ambition to open a shop in Essex for some time now, and the Bond Street development couldn’t be a better proposition for us.”
Aquila chairman Tony Chambers commented: “The opening of the new John Lewis store, along with a fantastic range of other shops and restaurants, will transform the shopping experience in Chelmsford. This has been a long time coming but I’m confident it will prove to be worth waiting for.”
Other retailers opening on the same day as part of the wider Bond Street development include The White Company, Foyles, Joules and Jack Wills. Located at the heart of the city centre, the complex will feature a range of riverside restaurants and an Everyman cinema.
The opening date announcement comes as John Lewis Chelmsford launches its search for local charities to support as part of its Community Matters programme. Anyone can nominate a charity, which sees £3,000 split between three local charities every 12 weeks.
Nominations for Essex’s first Community Matters programme can be made by sending a 100-200 word nomination to CommunityMattersEssex@johnlewis.co.uk. Emails should highlight the charity’s cause and why it’s important to Chelmsford residents.
John Lewis operates 46 John Lewis shops across the UK (32 department stores, 12 John Lewis at home and shops at St Pancras International and Heathrow Terminal 2) as well as johnlewis.com.
