Queues out the door for Newcastle West shop opening

SHOPPING fever hit Newcastle West with a bang this Thursday when the new Homesavers shop opened its doors to the public.

The shop is located in the former Garvey’s SuperValu Supermarket in the Market Yard which closed down in 2015.

On Thursday morning, with the much-anticipated opening just minutes away, long queues had already formed to get past the glass doors where work had been ongoing for several weeks.

With shelves stacked high and then higher again, there was a lot for shoppers and the curious to see and buy and queues at the tills were long, until well into the evening.

The re-opening of the large building as a shop has been welcomed as a very positive boost to the town, adding to the selection of shops already there. An additional plus-factor, for many, is that the adjacent car-park, which has been closed for some time, has now also re-opened for the store’s customers.

The abrupt closure of the Garveys store, in April 2015, with the loss of 45 jobs, was met with dismay in the area and speculation has continued sporadically since about what might replace it.

A section of the building has been used over the past while as a bakery for Dooleys’ SuperValu in nearby Bishop Street.

It is understood over 30 jobs have been created with the opening of Homesavers.