Major retailers are now opening their doors at the revitalised Abbey Wood Shopping Park in Filton, Bristol.
The shopping park, which has undergone a £10 million refurbishment and extension, is now home to Asda, Costa Coffee and restaurant chains Frankie & Benny’s and Nando’s.
Sporting Pro, the new sports fascia owned by value fashion chain Matalan and backed by Intersport, will also open its first store in the South West at the park before Christmas.
The development of the park has included redesigning the car park and common areas to create a public realm and developing buildings to provide new community space and leisure facilities.
Frankie & Benny’s opened to the public last month and was followed yesterday (Monday 2nd December) by a new 24-hour Asda store.
Costa Coffee, Nando’s and Sporting Pro will complete this phase of new stores, opening within the next few weeks.
These new shops and restaurants join existing retailers Matalan, Pets at Home, Brantano, Next Clearance and McDonalds.
Further stores that have signed up to the scheme, including a new Subway and other national chains still to be announced, which are expected to open to the public before spring next year.
Ian Cody, Asset Manager, Hermes Real Estate Investment Management Limited (HREIML), commented:
“This is an exciting time for the scheme and we’re looking forward to working with the new and existing shops and restaurants to provide a new shopping and leisure destination for the local community.”
“The area is rapidly developing with new homes, businesses, the university campus and public facilities so it’s important to us that we provide a central location where people can get their groceries, take their pets to the vet, shop for clothes, homeware and come together to socialise.”
“The park has the opportunity to be a local hub and we’re keen to develop that further. The next step will be turning the community space into a doctor’s surgery, post office and library or exercise space – a place that is beneficial to nearby businesses and local residents.”
The redevelopment of the shopping park has included demolishing the former Woolworths and TJ Hughes stores to build nine new units ranging from 1,500 sqft to 45,251 sqft, including the new Asda store. The canopy and façades along the Northern Terrace, home to the existing retailers, have also been renewed, further enhancing Abbey Wood as an attractive shopping destination. Artwork displaying a black and white scene of Filton Abbey Wood Station has also been installed to the rear of Costa and Nandos.
A new footbridge has been created to the rear of the new Frankie & Benny’s to improve the access to the site from Filton Abbey Wood Station and the Ministry of Defence’s Abbey Wood site. In addition, bike racks have been installed for cyclists using the surrounding foot and cycle paths that link the site to Bristol Parkway Station, the Ministry of Defence and UWE’s Frenchay campus.
For individual store and restaurant opening hours visit: www.abbeywoodshoppingpark.co.uk
Photo: The Northern Terrace at Abbey Wood Shopping Park.
Have heard its a bit cramped but hey it’s only just opened up