The demise of home furnishings and DIY will be the outdoors’ gain with the opening of two new stores by expanding retailer GO Outdoors.
A former Wickes in Newcastle and an ex MFI in Basingstoke will open next month as outdoor retailers, offering more than 20,000 lines on which keen walkers and climbers can spend their Christmas cash. The Newcastle store, in West Denton Way, will feature a 5m indoor climbing wall.
Both stores will also have indoor tent areas on synthetic turf. The Basingstoke shop will be on Reading Road, Chineham.
In eerily similar statements, both store managers stressed the importance of the stores’ location to outdoors lovers, in the case of Newcastle with the Northumberland and County Durham countryside on its doorstep, and Basingstoke benefiting from the proximity of the South Downs, Salisbury Plain and the New Forest.
Earlier this year, Sheffield-based GO Outdoors announced expansion plans leading to 1,000 new jobs following a £18 million refinancing package with Bank of Scotland Corporate. The Newcastle and Basingstoke openings will each create 40 new retail posts.
Would-be employees can apply via the jobs link on the company’s website.
Martin Biermann (Cllr)
08 November 2009Just for the record, the Basingstoke store isn't in Chineham, just NEAR Chineham.
Mart L
09 November 2009I'm all for expanding access to outdoor activities through the provision of affordable equipment, but I would hate to think our small shops would suffer as a result. I love the fact that our sports are catered for by small and personal purveyors of kit who generally know their stuff. The advent of supermarket style shops can only hurt this, as it has done in the high street with the likes of ASDA and TESCO now holding a massive market share. I popped into the Go Outdoors in Bristol and was very disappointed by the selection of climbing equipment and by the dismal lack of knowledge of the staff on duty. In fairness this may have been a blip, but having experienced it I’m not going back.