Bunnings to open new, smaller format store in Bicester

Home improvement and garden retailer Bunnings has announced plans to open smaller format stores, with Bicester the first to open later this month, creating 10 new full and part-time jobs.

The new store, on the site of the former Homebase on Launton Road Retail Park, continues the momentum of establishing the Bunnings brand in the UK’s £38 billion-a-year home improvement and garden market.

The new Bicester store promises customers lowest prices everyday across a wide range of home improvement and garden products from global market-leading brands.

Customers will also be able to choose from thousands of additional products via the Special Orders desk. Other services include paint mixing, key cutting, timber cutting and an in-store Hire Shop, providing tools for collection or home delivery.

In the run-up to the store opening, 55 team members will receive hundreds of hours training to help customers with their home and garden projects.

The company has also confirmed today, that the 20th Bunnings store will replace the Homebase on New Zealand Avenue in Walton on Thames. The existing store will close for refurbishment around 7th January 2018, with the opening likely to take place 3-4 weeks later. 

So far this year, Bunnings has opened 12 Warehouse stores across the country with the largest in Milton Keynes (90,000 square feet). As part of its ongoing pilot programme, Bunnings will be testing a smaller format store in Bicester, which is approximately half the size at 36,700 square feet. This will be the first of their stores in the UK just branded 'Bunnings' and not Bunnings Warehouse.

The twelve Bunnings stores now officially open and trading include the following (click on links for full address and details):-

• St.Albans - Griffiths Way
• St.Albans - Hatfield Way
• Hemel Hempstead - London Road
• Milton Keynes - Snowdon Drive
• Folkestone - Park Farm Road
• Broadstairs - Westwood Gateway Retail Park
• Sittingbourne (Kent)
• Basildon Vange (Essex)
• Weston-super-mare (Avon)
• Harlow (Essex)
• Basingstoke (Hampshire)
• Rotherham (South Yorkshire)

Check out our Insight DIY map of the UK here, showing all 20 known Bunnings locations.

PJ Davis, Managing Director of Bunnings UK and Ireland, said: “We are still in phase one of our acquisition plan and trialling Bunnings pilot stores is an important part of this. We are testing and learning from different formats, store sizes and locations, and the success of the pilots remains an absolute precursor to any further investment.

Source: Insight DIY Team & Bunnings Press Release.

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